fearsome

adjective

fear·​some ˈfir-səm 

1

a

: causing fear

a fearsome monster

b

: intense, extreme

fearsome determination

2

: timid, timorous

fearsomely adverb

fearsomeness noun

Synonyms

• formidable
• terrifying
• frightening
• scary
• horrible
• terrible
• intimidating

Examples of fearsome in a Sentence

at night the child would always imagine that there were fearsome monsters lurking under his bed

after working all afternoon in the hot sun, I had developed a fearsome thirst

Recent Examples on the Web

There just before the Spanish Conquest, fearsome Indigenous community the Pastos, regrouping in the Andes’ Western Cordillera, stopped Inca empire expansion northwards in its tracks. —John Hopewell, Variety, 15 July 2025

There, German artillery fired fearsome minenwerfer shells, which weighed a hundred and forty pounds, and invaded the soldiers’ dreams. —Ed Caesar, New Yorker, 13 July 2025

Then her fearsome, peerless backhand wouldn’t go in. —Matthew Futterman, New York Times, 12 July 2025

Alphas: The most fearsome and brutal of all, consider alphas as infected on steroids. —EW.com, 20 June 2025

Word History

Etymology

fear entry 1 + -some entry 1

First Known Use

1768, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Kids Definition

fearsome

adjective

fear·​some ˈfi(ə)r-səm 

1

: causing fear

2

: timid

fearsomely adverb

fearsomeness noun