Synonyms of dread

dread 1 of 3

adjective

as in terrifying

causing fear

every ship on the Spanish Main was terrified of running into the dread pirate

Synonyms & Similar Words

• terrifying
• frightening
• scary
• formidable
• horrible
• terrible
• fearful
• intimidating
• alarming
• dreadful
• horrifying
• shocking
• direful
• eerie
• startling
• ghastly
• frightful
• creepy
• forbidding
• dire
• fearsome
• trying
• horrendous
• spine-chilling
• eery
• redoubtable
• troubling
• gruesome
• unnerving
• threatening
• disturbing
• hair-raising
• demoralizing
• daunting
• discouraging
• disquieting
• disconcerting
• dismaying
• hideous
• distressing
• perturbing
• weird
• nightmarish
• horrid
• monstrous
• macabre
• grisly
• awful
• appalling
• bone-chilling
• grewsome
• atrocious

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• reassuring
• comforting
• relaxing
• soothing
• calming
• inviting
• consoling
• tranquilizing
• quieting
• lulling
• tranquillizing
• pacifying
• nonthreatening
• nonintimidating

dread

2 of 3

noun

1

as in worry

suspicion or fear of future harm or misfortune

the dread felt by people awaiting bad news

Synonyms & Similar Words

• worry
• anxiety
• uncertainty
• fearfulness
• apprehension
• concern
• unease
• apprehensiveness
• foreboding
• misgiving
• alarm
• alarum
• suspense
• doubt
• uneasiness
• distress
• disquiet
• agitation
• mistrust
• funk
• disquietude
• perturbation
• solicitude
• anxiousness
• pessimism
• wariness
• disturbance
• scruple
• defeatism
• presentiment
• premonition
• suspiciousness
• foreknowledge
• incertitude
• presage

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• anticipation
• excitement
• hope
• confidence
• hopefulness
• optimism
• sanguinity

2

as in fear

the emotion experienced in the presence or threat of danger

we were filled with dread when we saw the rapids we would be rafting down

Synonyms & Similar Words

• fear
• anxiety
• fearfulness
• panic
• terror
• trepidation
• horror
• fright
• worry
• scare
• dismay
• alarm
• concern
• alarum
• pang
• nervousness
• phobia
• apprehension
• creeps
• agitation
• twinge
• jitters
• consternation
• disquiet
• funk
• perturbation
• qualm
• timidity
• willies
• cowardice
• discomposure
• timorousness
• faintheartedness

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• confidence
• assurance
• boldness
• aplomb
• self-confidence
• courage
• daring
• fearlessness
• fortitude
• bravery
• self-assurance
• valor
• gallantry
• intrepidity
• stoutness
• hardihood
• nerve
• audacity
• guts
• intrepidness
• courageousness
• dauntlessness
• doughtiness

3

as in terror

something or someone that causes fear or dread especially without reason

speaking in public is a perennial dread for many people

Synonyms & Similar Words

• terror
• plague
• torment
• bogy
• curse
• bugbear
• enemy
• bugaboo
• spirit
• ogre
• bogie
• bête noire
• demon
• spectre
• horror
• bogey
• specter
• monster
• hobgoblin
• black beast
• fright
• ghost
• apparition
• wraith
• phantom
• phantasm
• incubus
• horrible
• bogeyman
• spook
• daemon
• poltergeist
• banshee
• ghoul
• imp
• bane
• fantasm
• devil
• bogyman
• scourge
• abomination
• fiend
• shade
• monstrosity
• anathema

dread

3 of 3

verb

as in to fear

Related Words

• fear
• apprehend
• perceive
• caution
• preview
• descry
• alert
• forewarn
• envision
• visualize
• discern
• envisage
• predict
• foresee
• foreshadow
• prophesy
• divine
• foretoken
• forecast
• presage
• prefigure
• anticipate
• foretell
• prognosticate
• augur
• prevision
• foreknow
• forefeel

Synonym Chooser

How is the word dread distinct from other similar nouns?

Some common synonyms of dread are alarm, fear, fright, panic, terror, and trepidation. While all these words mean "painful agitation in the presence or anticipation of danger," 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

When is alarm a more appropriate choice than dread?

In some situations, the words alarm and dread are roughly equivalent. However, alarm suggests a sudden and intense awareness of immediate danger.

view the situation with alarm

When could fear be used to replace dread?

The meanings of fear and dread largely overlap; however, fear is the most general term and implies anxiety and usually loss of courage.

fear of the unknown

In what contexts can fright take the place of dread?

Although the words fright and dread have much in common, fright implies the shock of sudden, startling fear.

fright at being awakened suddenly

Where would panic be a reasonable alternative to dread?

The synonyms panic and dread are sometimes interchangeable, but panic implies unreasoning and overmastering fear causing hysterical activity.

the news caused widespread panic

When might terror be a better fit than dread?

While in some cases nearly identical to dread, terror implies the most extreme degree of fear.

immobilized with terror

How do trepidation and dread relate to one another?

Trepidation adds to dread the implications of timidity, trembling, and hesitation.

raised the subject with trepidation

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of dread

Adjective

The ambiguity surrounding Iran’s nuclear program will remain unsettling for its foes and for its Arab Gulf neighbors, which dread instability. —Hasan T. Alhasan, Foreign Affairs, 4 Aug. 2025

Many people dread meal prep, but streamlining your kitchen can help make this chore move a bit faster, Kamat explains. —Sarah Lyon, Southern Living, 9 Aug. 2025

Noun

Many wrestle with dread, spiritual disorientation and a shattered sense of safety in the world. —Liza Barros-Lane, The Conversation, 17 July 2025

Inside the country, optimism and dread wrestle for the soul of a people. —Nazanin Boniadi, Time, 17 June 2025

Verb

Right now, a legislator, even Anwar, spending time in prison adds to the whispers of dread circulating around Hartford. —Kevin Rennie, Hartford Courant, 9 Aug. 2025

Loznitsa constructs his story with a patient yet unmistakable sense of mounting dread, focusing on the devastating minutiae that allows fascism to function in our world. —Jill Goldsmith, Deadline, 5 Aug. 2025