scare

1 of 2

verb

scared; scaring

transitive verb

: to frighten especially suddenly : alarm
scarer noun

scare

2 of 2

noun

1
: a sudden fright
2
: a widespread state of alarm : panic
scare adjective

Example Sentences

Verb You scared me. I didn't see you there. Stop that, you're scaring the children. Noun There have been scares about the water supply being contaminated. fired over their heads in order to throw a scare into them
Recent Examples on the Web
Verb
With the moose upended, Jeremiah and the others sped forward to scare it off. Paul Richards, Field & Stream, 20 Mar. 2023 At Çukurcuma Hamamı, a luxury bath house that has been welcoming visitors and locals into its steamy embrace since 1831, manager Büke Yurdadoğ is among many working in the travel industry concerned that the quake will scare away tourists. Feride Yalav-heckeroth, CNN, 18 Mar. 2023 This should scare the hell [out] of bankers and regulators worldwide. Jeff John Roberts, Fortune Crypto, 13 Mar. 2023 In his deposition, Schreier said his comments were made out of a concern that Bartiromo was straying too far from financial news and that coverage of divisive political issues would scare away advertisers from her program. Stephen Battaglio, Los Angeles Times, 9 Mar. 2023 How to scare off a coyote: Make loud noises, but do not turn and run away; the coyote may view it as an opportunity to chase. Ellie Willard, The Arizona Republic, 8 Mar. 2023 The handcuffing exercise, which brought the girl to tears in the courtroom, was intended to scare her away from doing drugs and ending up in court like her father, Benitez explained to her, according to a transcript of the Feb. 13 hearing. San Diego Union-Tribune, 28 Feb. 2023 Three: Maybe a certain kind of indictment would scare his voters away. Michael Tomasky, The New Republic, 20 Feb. 2023 Audrey quickly burns herself out trying to make sure that Ben is comfortable and that her disapproving mother and suspiciously good-natured father do not scare away the man of her dreams. Jenny Wu, Washington Post, 24 Jan. 2023
Noun
In actuality, the screams are coming from cheap Halloween decor in pursuit of a good jump-scare. Lauren Puckett-pope, ELLE, 26 Feb. 2023 The Talk episode about her December health scare, which involved her being rushed to the hospital in Santa Paula, Calif., following a mysterious medical emergency. Hannah Dailey, Billboard, 4 Jan. 2023 Biden’s central message was the ‘ULTRA MAGA’ scare. Alex Leary, WSJ, 7 Nov. 2022 In an alternate timeline, Timberlake could’ve delivered this poetic line and possibly have done this dance that doubles as a jump scare (instead of a different cringey one). Vulture, 31 Oct. 2022 On Saturday, senior quarterback William Watson put on a show to give St. John’s College High School (Md.) a scare in a 41-24 loss, delivering a statement that the defending D1 state champs can play with anyone in the country. Nate Weitzer, BostonGlobe.com, 25 Sep. 2022 One year ago, Samford gave another SEC East team a scare, leading Florida 42-28 in the first half before the Gators rallied for a 70-52 win. Charles Odum, ajc, 10 Sep. 2022 In the wake of the NFL player's health scare, a GoFundMe benefitting Hamlin's charity has received more than $3.5 million in donations. Skyler Caruso, Peoplemag, 14 Feb. 2023 Managed through unusual events (e.g., a pregnancy scare) to keep relationship operating to standard. Bryn Durgin, The New Yorker, 10 Feb. 2023 See More

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'scare.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Word History

Etymology

Verb

Middle English skerren, from Old Norse skirra, from skjarr shy, timid

First Known Use

Verb

13th century, in the meaning defined at transitive sense

Noun

circa 1548, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of scare was in the 13th century

Dictionary Entries Near scare

Cite this Entry

“Scare.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/scare. Accessed 26 Mar. 2023.

Kids Definition

scare

1 of 2 verb
ˈske(ə)r How to pronounce scare (audio)
ˈska(ə)r
scared; scaring
1
: to frighten suddenly : alarm
2
: to become scared

scare

2 of 2 noun
1
: a sudden fright
2
: a widespread state of alarm : panic

More from Merriam-Webster on scare

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