Synonyms of frighten

frighten 1 of 3

verb (1)

ˈfrī-tᵊn 

as in to scare

to strike with fear

around the campfire the campers tried to frighten one another with ghostly legends and grisly tales

Synonyms & Similar Words

• scare
• terrify
• startle
• spook
• shock
• horrify
• terrorize
• shake
• panic
• fright
• alarm
• affright
• scarify
• distract
• amaze
• worry
• appall
• disturb
• give one the creeps
• jolt
• unsettle
• astound
• make one's flesh creep
• upset
• unnerve
• shake up
• daunt
• dismay
• awe
• dispirit
• emasculate
• disconcert
• distress
• perturb
• discomfort
• demoralize
• floor
• unman
• disquiet
• bowl over
• psych (out)
• undo
• discompose
• unstring
• chill

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• reassure
• assure
• soothe
• cheer
• comfort
• encourage
• inspire
• console
• steel
• embolden
• solace
• hearten

frightening

2 of 3

adjective

ˈfrī-tᵊn-iŋ 

as in terrifying

causing fear

a truly frightening movie

Synonyms & Similar Words

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

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

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

frightening

3 of 3

verb (2)

present participle of frighten

as in scaring

to strike with fear

around the campfire the campers tried to frighten one another with ghostly legends and grisly tales

Synonyms & Similar Words

• terrifying
• scaring
• startling
• shocking
• spooking
• horrifying
• alarming
• shaking
• terrorizing
• panicking
• frighting
• scarifying
• amazing
• worrying
• appalling
• distracting
• affrighting
• disturbing
• jolting
• unsettling
• dismaying
• upsetting
• astounding
• giving one the creeps
• daunting
• making one's flesh creep
• unnerving
• distressing
• disconcerting
• disquieting
• shaking up
• dispiriting
• discomforting
• awing
• bowling over
• emasculating
• perturbing
• chilling
• demoralizing
• undoing
• psyching (out)
• flooring
• unmanning
• discomposing
• unstringing

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• reassuring
• comforting
• assuring
• soothing
• cheering
• consoling
• encouraging
• inspiring
• solacing
• emboldening
• heartening
• steeling

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of frighten

Verb

At the very start of the pandemic, while most Americans were hunkered down, frightened for their lives and worried about job loss, RealPage hosted a virtual pep talk for landlords. — Literary Hub, 14 Oct. 2026

Viewers will come away convinced the world’s richest man mostly excels at self-promotion; they’ll also be frightened by the power he’s accrued. — The Week Us, TheWeek, 13 Oct. 2026

Adjective

Maybe that’s why some older elementary school kids actively seek out frightening reading. — Liz Rosenberg, The Conversation, 23 Oct. 2026

Central Florida has been overtaken by frightening fiends and ghoulish gatherings on front lawns of suburban homes as Halloween fast approaches. — Patrick Connolly, The Orlando Sentinel, 22 Oct. 2026

Verb

Clumsiness notwithstanding, bringing a criminal case against a journalist who was reporting on a protest is an authoritarian tactic—a means of frightening the press away from uncovering the truth. — Quinta Jurecic, The Atlantic, 30 Jan. 2026

But monks there complained that the slain king was walking around at night, frightening them with strange sounds. — Rivka Galchen, New Yorker, 7 Jan. 2026