frightened; frightening
ˈfrī-tᵊn-iŋ 
ˈfrīt-niŋ
1
: to make afraid : terrify
The movie scene frightened the child.
2
: to drive or force by frightening
frightened the boy into confessing
: to become frightened
She doesn't frighten easily.
Examples of frighten in a Sentence
The story really frightened me.
The child was badly frightened by the mask.
Recent Examples on the Web
The king of the forest was once frightened by the sound of a bull.
—
John Nemec, The Conversation, 7 Apr. 2025
The prospect of returning to the role, first for a West End reprise in February and then for the Brooklyn performance frightened her.
—Alexis Soloski, New York Times, 26 Mar. 2025
In a parliamentary debate in October, Blair McDougall, a Scottish MP, said his Hong Kong constituents were frightened.
—Cora Engelbrecht, The Atlantic, 25 Mar. 2025
Do the spectres of Russia, China, and North Korea actually frighten people in the United States?
—Jay Caspian Kang, The New Yorker, 7 Mar. 2025
See All Example Sentences for frighten
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John Nemec, The Conversation, 7 Apr. 2025
The prospect of returning to the role, first for a West End reprise in February and then for the Brooklyn performance frightened her.
—Alexis Soloski, New York Times, 26 Mar. 2025
In a parliamentary debate in October, Blair McDougall, a Scottish MP, said his Hong Kong constituents were frightened.
—Cora Engelbrecht, The Atlantic, 25 Mar. 2025
Do the spectres of Russia, China, and North Korea actually frighten people in the United States?
—Jay Caspian Kang, The New Yorker, 7 Mar. 2025
See All Example Sentences for frighten
Cite this Entry
“Frighten.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/frighten. Accessed 4 May. 2025.
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