terrify

verb

ter·​ri·​fy ˈter-ə-ˌfī 

ˈte-rə-

terrified; terrifying

transitive verb

1

a

: to drive or impel by menacing : scare

b

: deter, intimidate

2

: to fill with terror

Synonyms

• frighten
• scare
• startle

Examples of terrify in a Sentence

The thought of dying alone terrifies her.

the prospect of speaking in front of a huge crowd of people absolutely terrifies me

Recent Examples on the Web

However, other homebuyers are terrified that the government shutdown may derail their homeownership dreams altogether. —Samantha Delouya, CNN Money, 15 Oct. 2025

Jesus may haunt Wendell, but Wendell terrifies Lee. —Amanda Whiting, Vulture, 15 Oct. 2025

The brigade of heavily armed cops terrified the kids, causing Cooper to take stock of police tactics deployed in service of nabbing people who might be no more than casual pot smokers. —Matthew Carey, Deadline, 14 Oct. 2025

Hollywood has arguably played a role in helping keep the world rightly terrified of nukes for the last 80 years. —James Hibberd, HollywoodReporter, 14 Oct. 2025

Word History

Etymology

Latin terrificare, from terrificus

First Known Use

15th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Rhymes for terrify

• abscissae
• alibi
• alkali
• alumni
• amoebae
• amplify
• annuli
• beautify
• brachii
• butterfly
• calculi
• certify

Kids Definition

terrify

verb

ter·​ri·​fy ˈter-ə-ˌfī 

terrified; terrifying

: to fill with terror

terrifyingly

-ˌfī-iŋ-lē

adverb