Definition of TREPIDATION

Choose the Right Synonym for trepidation

fear, dread, fright, alarm, panic, terror, trepidation mean painful agitation in the presence or anticipation of danger. fear is the most general term and implies anxiety and usually loss of courage. fear of the unknown dread usually adds the idea of intense reluctance to face or meet a person or situation and suggests aversion as well as anxiety. faced the meeting with dread fright implies the shock of sudden, startling fear. fright at being awakened suddenly alarm suggests a sudden and intense awareness of immediate danger. view the situation with alarm panic implies unreasoning and overmastering fear causing hysterical activity. the news caused widespread panic terror implies the most extreme degree of fear. immobilized with terror trepidation adds to dread the implications of timidity, trembling, and hesitation. raised the subject with trepidation

Examples of trepidation in a Sentence

In the first minutes, hours, or even days of fieldwork most researchers feel trepidation about being an outsider, a stranger on the scene … —Marie D. Price, Geographical Review, January-April 2001 This was an ambitious project, and a number of us felt some trepidation about the possible results. —Brian Phillips, New Republic, 13 Dec. 1999 I came aboard the 319 with trepidation, to join the lives of utter strangers, a man untried by the circumstances they had known. —Henry G. Bugbee, Jr., "Naval History," in Authors at Sea, Robert Shenk, ed., 1997 He had some trepidation about agreeing to their proposal. shaking with trepidation, I stepped into the old abandoned house

Recent Examples on the Web

Businesses eyeing with trepidation the growth of executive power may find the courts aren’t the solution. — Greg Ip, WSJ, "The Supreme Court Won’t Stop Executive Overreach," 11 July 2018 Ms Smith, a director at a private-equity firm in New York, opened it with trepidation. — The Economist, "Run, TaskRabbit, run: July 2030," 5 July 2018 López Obrador’s win puts a leftist leader at the helm of Latin America’s second largest economy for the first time in decades, a prospect that has filled millions of Mexicans with hope — and the nation’s elites with trepidation. — Azam Ahmed And Paulina Villegas, BostonGlobe.com, "Leftist Andrés Manuel López Obrador will be Mexico’s next president," 2 July 2018 Producers and employees are still feeling trepidation about greater scrutiny of budgets and potential staff cuts, according to people in attendance. — Ryan Faughnder, latimes.com, "How AT&T could use Time Warner shows and movies to compete with Disney and Netflix," 3 July 2018 Others in your situation would consider this as an exciting opportunity and be eager to explore other cultures and branches of the organization, while some, like you, view it with more trepidation. — Elaine Varelas, BostonGlobe.com, "Don’t rush to turn down work travel," 14 Apr. 2018 As America slouches toward the midterms, there is some trepidation over what rough beast will be born. — Sarah Jones, The New Republic, "Is It Time for Change at Our Revolution?," 21 May 2018 At the State Department, the shake-up was met with a mixture of relief and trepidation. — Washington Post, "Nominee to lead State Dept.: Soft policy on Russia ‘over’," 11 Apr. 2018 When excerpts from the discussion leaked to the New York Times earlier this week, a sense of trepidation, particularly among the critics community, seemed to follow. — Lacey Rose, The Hollywood Reporter, "Emmys: HBO's Most Nominated Streak Ends Amid AT&T's Volume Push," 12 July 2018

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