as in to frighten
to strike with fear
a ghastly sight that would affright any person
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
Recent Examples of Synonyms for affright
Verb
-
Judy Hernandez’ husband Raul, a co-founder of the community group the Resurrection Project, dismissed those plans as a political stunt geared to create fear and frighten Spanish-speaking people.—
Tess Kenny,
Chicago Tribune,
5 Sep. 2025 -
Many of us are conditioned to think that our ultimate goal in life is to be with someone, so much so, that the mere thought of being alone frightens us.—
Mark Travers,
Forbes.com,
2 Sep. 2025
Verb
-
Yet, at the same time, automation scares people.—
Arthur Azizov,
Forbes.com,
8 Sep. 2025
-
Parents, scared by the specter of brain damage, are reluctant to let their kids play tackle football.—
Seth Wickersham,
The Atlantic,
8 Sep. 2025
Verb
-
All of this terrified his father, Charlie, a former cop who had a premonition that something would go wrong.—
Seth Wickersham,
The Atlantic,
8 Sep. 2025
-
Lewis, the five-star recruit and the people’s choice, looked good handing off and terrified on obvious passing downs.—
Sean Keeler,
Denver Post,
7 Sep. 2025
Verb
-
Then the Buckel brothers arrived, intent on doing the same, and Smith was startled.—
Olivia B. Waxman,
Time,
4 Sep. 2025
-
Another Epstein accuser looked up, startled, to see where the deafening sound was coming from.—
Josh Meyer,
USA Today,
3 Sep. 2025
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
Read More
Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
Send us feedback.
Cite this Entry
“Affright.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/affright. Accessed 11 Sep. 2025.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share