scares; scared; scaring
1
: to cause (someone) to become afraid : frighten
You scared me. I didn't see you there.
Stop that, you're scaring the children.
The loud noise scared them. = They were scared by the loud noise.
You nearly scared me to death. [=you scared me very much]
2
: to become afraid
I don't scare easily.
plural scares
1
: a sudden feeling of fear
You gave me (quite) a scare. [=you scared me]
She had a pregnancy scare. [=she was afraid she was pregnant]
2
: a situation in which a lot of people become afraid because of some threat, danger, etc.
There have been scares about the water supply being contaminated.
a bomb scare [=a situation in which people are afraid because someone says that a bomb is going to explode]
Cite this Entry
“Scare.” Merriam-Webster.com Simple Definition, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/simple/scare. Accessed 15 Jun. 2026.
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