terrify
verb
ter·ri·fy
ˈter-ə-ˌfī 
ˈte-rə-
terrified; terrifying
1
a
: to drive or impel by menacing : scare
b
: deter, intimidate
2
: to fill with terror
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
And there are a lot of things to be very rightly and understandably terrified of right now, and uncertainty about what's to come.
—
Nathan Diller, USA Today, 7 June 2026
Jim Barne and Kit Buchan were terrified of being outed as frauds.
—Rebecca Rubin, Variety, 2 June 2026
High school senior Lexa is terrified about stepping into the lead role in her school’s spring production.
—Carly Tagen-Dye, PEOPLE, 2 June 2026
The painting is assumed to depict the Greek myth of a Titan who eats his own offspring, terrified that one of his children will overthrow him.
—Dani Di Placido, Forbes.com, 31 May 2026
See All Example Sentences for terrify
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Nathan Diller, USA Today, 7 June 2026
Jim Barne and Kit Buchan were terrified of being outed as frauds.
—Rebecca Rubin, Variety, 2 June 2026
High school senior Lexa is terrified about stepping into the lead role in her school’s spring production.
—Carly Tagen-Dye, PEOPLE, 2 June 2026
The painting is assumed to depict the Greek myth of a Titan who eats his own offspring, terrified that one of his children will overthrow him.
—Dani Di Placido, Forbes.com, 31 May 2026
See All Example Sentences for terrify
Cite this Entry
“Terrify.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/terrify. Accessed 9 Jun. 2026.
Copy CitationKids Definition
terrify
verb
ter·ri·fy
ˈter-ə-ˌfī
terrified; terrifying
: to fill with terror
terrifyingly
adverb
-ˌfī-iŋ-lē
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