scare away/off

phrasal verb

scared away/off; scaring away/off; scares away/off
: to cause (someone or something) to go away and stay away because of fear or because of possible trouble, difficulty, etc.
The dog scared the prowler away.
The noise scared off the birds.
Tourists have been scared off by the recent violence in the city.

Examples of scare away/off in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web In ancient China, a solar eclipse signaled that the sun was being devoured by a dragon; people would bang drums and make loud noises to scare off the beast and bring back daylight. Dan Falk, Smithsonian Magazine, 13 Mar. 2024 The Texans claimed Tart, with two other teams putting in claims as well, so clearly the concerns weren’t so bad as to scare off suitors. Barry Jackson, Miami Herald, 27 Feb. 2024 Detroit’s stout run defense won’t scare off coach Kyle Shanahan. Rob Maaddi, USA TODAY, 26 Jan. 2024 Many people use outdoor lights for security purposes, helping to scare off animals and improve visibility in the dark, but many lights can also make your outdoor living space more usable at night. Camryn Rabideau, Peoplemag, 19 Jan. 2024 His considerable fortune helped scare away the Republican Party from mounting a serious challenge in 2006. Todd Richmond, Fortune, 28 Dec. 2023 Shocking video shows a broad daylight robbery in an upscale New York City neighborhood, where a doorman saw the commotion and came outside to scare off the thieves as onlookers stood nearby and did nothing to help the female victim. Michael Ruiz, Fox News, 8 Feb. 2024 In response, the villagers are said to have set off explosions to scare off the monster, and the practice caught on. Mario Poceski, The Conversation, 5 Feb. 2024 Alabama’s next head coach will spend his entire tenure in Saban’s shadow, which might scare off a few contenders for the position. Paul Myerberg, USA TODAY, 11 Jan. 2024

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'scare away/off.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

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Cite this Entry

“Scare away/off.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/scare%20away%2Foff. Accessed 29 Mar. 2024.

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