as in terrified
filled with fear or dread
he sat rigid in his seat, horrified that the plane would crash
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
as in frightened
to strike with fear
the old black-and-white psychological thriller still horrifies audiences
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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.
Recent Examples of horrified
Graham Hillard, The Washington Examiner, 31 May 2026
As his tricks progressed, the Young Man felt horrified and confused at the same time.
—Literary Hub, 20 May 2026
Bowers told Vuong, who called the business and legal division while Bowers sent screeners to the horrified standards and practices department of the famously conservative broadcast network.
—Anna Peele, Vulture, 20 May 2026
To her horrified astonishment, Miss Manners has received a number of letters reporting that guests are taking gross advantage of hospitality by cadging future meals.
—Judith Martin, Sun Sentinel, 12 May 2026
As the scene was projected onto a screen, Jude seemed slightly horrified to see himself in front of the camera rather than behind it.
—Rebecca Mead, New Yorker, 13 Apr. 2026
The horrified fisherman ran out to the street to hail the Mascotte police chief, who was directing traffic in front of a nearby elementary school.
—Martin E. Comas, The Orlando Sentinel, 26 Mar. 2026
And the posts do tend to trigger horrified reactions from other TikTok users.
—Kristen Rogers, CNN Money, 19 Feb. 2026
The partygoers don’t really know how to react until Stab interrupts the performance to choke Kid out, and then everyone becomes horrified.
—Alphonse Pierre, Pitchfork, 13 Feb. 2026
Margherita Bassi, Popular Science, 18 June 2026
Needless to say, Summer is horrified.
—Lily Brown, PEOPLE, 16 June 2026
The club’s owner, Willie Dann, said he is horrified by what has happened recently and regrets ever hiring Kerlew.
—Ryan Oehrli, Charlotte Observer, 13 June 2026
Shoppers are rightly horrified at the idea of people staffing supermarkets into old age.
—Ann Larson, Time, 11 June 2026
The treatment of Somali referee Omar Artan has horrified many of his fellow officials, who have nothing but sympathy for a man whom few have met or seen in action.
—Graham Scott, New York Times, 9 June 2026
Pencov was horrified by the accusation.
—Heidi Blake, New Yorker, 8 June 2026
Expecting a romantic interlude, he is horrified to find Jenny’s lifeless body artfully arranged on the bed.
—ArsTechnica, 7 June 2026
Every episode of the series, including its most controversial to date, pushed its characters to the edge – and some even to their death – leaving viewers shocked and, in some cases, horrified.
—Saman Shafiq, USA Today, 1 June 2026
Adjective
As a horrified Sam inadvertently observes, a creature has been sating itself on his buddy’s brain.
—Graham Hillard, The Washington Examiner, 31 May 2026
As his tricks progressed, the Young Man felt horrified and confused at the same time.
—Literary Hub, 20 May 2026
Bowers told Vuong, who called the business and legal division while Bowers sent screeners to the horrified standards and practices department of the famously conservative broadcast network.
—Anna Peele, Vulture, 20 May 2026
To her horrified astonishment, Miss Manners has received a number of letters reporting that guests are taking gross advantage of hospitality by cadging future meals.
—Judith Martin, Sun Sentinel, 12 May 2026
As the scene was projected onto a screen, Jude seemed slightly horrified to see himself in front of the camera rather than behind it.
—Rebecca Mead, New Yorker, 13 Apr. 2026
The horrified fisherman ran out to the street to hail the Mascotte police chief, who was directing traffic in front of a nearby elementary school.
—Martin E. Comas, The Orlando Sentinel, 26 Mar. 2026
And the posts do tend to trigger horrified reactions from other TikTok users.
—Kristen Rogers, CNN Money, 19 Feb. 2026
The partygoers don’t really know how to react until Stab interrupts the performance to choke Kid out, and then everyone becomes horrified.
—Alphonse Pierre, Pitchfork, 13 Feb. 2026
Verb
Or perhaps he’d be horrified by the idea of people getting to witness, over and over again, what were presumably the worst moments of his life.
—Margherita Bassi, Popular Science, 18 June 2026
Needless to say, Summer is horrified.
—Lily Brown, PEOPLE, 16 June 2026
The club’s owner, Willie Dann, said he is horrified by what has happened recently and regrets ever hiring Kerlew.
—Ryan Oehrli, Charlotte Observer, 13 June 2026
Shoppers are rightly horrified at the idea of people staffing supermarkets into old age.
—Ann Larson, Time, 11 June 2026
The treatment of Somali referee Omar Artan has horrified many of his fellow officials, who have nothing but sympathy for a man whom few have met or seen in action.
—Graham Scott, New York Times, 9 June 2026
Pencov was horrified by the accusation.
—Heidi Blake, New Yorker, 8 June 2026
Expecting a romantic interlude, he is horrified to find Jenny’s lifeless body artfully arranged on the bed.
—ArsTechnica, 7 June 2026
Every episode of the series, including its most controversial to date, pushed its characters to the edge – and some even to their death – leaving viewers shocked and, in some cases, horrified.
—Saman Shafiq, USA Today, 1 June 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for horrified
Adjective
-
Sunday, June 21, at a home in LaGrange, and the suspect’s 2-year-old daughter was among the terrified witnesses, the Lenoir County Sheriff’s Office said in court documents.—
Mark Price,
Charlotte Observer,
23 June 2026
-
Psilocybin, in particular, appears to be highly effective for helping people with terminal illnesses feel less terrified of dying.—
Amanda Petrusich,
New Yorker,
22 June 2026
Verb
-
But her outbursts frightened the children too.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
16 June 2026
-
What frightened me most was what might happen to my children.—
Monica Rodriguez-Aguilera,
New York Daily News,
15 June 2026
Adjective
-
That's the part so many seem afraid to say out loud.—
Dan Zaksheske OutKick,
FOXNews.com,
23 June 2026
-
The people who worked for cooperatives were particularly afraid.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
22 June 2026
Verb
-
Karma came walking up on Jamon Coleman one day with pistols in hand, the only kind of moment that ever scared his son.—
Luca Evans,
Denver Post,
21 June 2026
-
The scientists only got a passing glimpse of the goblin shark before the lights and loud noise from the ROV's motor scared it away, Auscavitch told ABC News.—
Julia Jacobo,
ABC News,
12 June 2026
Adjective
-
Her mom was incredibly proud — and a bit shocked — that a Black man had been elected president.—
Rebecca Johnson,
Chicago Tribune,
19 June 2026
-
While perusing an old friend’s social media account, she was shocked to see a little boy in the background of one of the photos.—
Aramide Tinubu,
Variety,
18 June 2026
Verb
-
To his luck, the sound finally startled the bear and sent it running.—
Paloma Chavez,
PEOPLE,
18 June 2026
-
Officials apparently were startled when more than 2,000 mostly young fans did just that.—
Jennifer Peltz,
Fortune,
17 June 2026
Adjective
-
Scenes involving firearms alarmed distributors still grappling with the aftermath of the Columbine massacre, while the film’s October release via Newmarket was further complicated by a trailer prominently featuring an airplane crash just weeks after the September 11 attacks.—
José Salazar,
IndieWire,
22 June 2026
-
That relationship lasted until 2016, when Mobileye dropped Tesla as a customer after being alarmed that a driver assistance system was being sold to end users as driverless technology.—
Jonathan M. Gitlin,
ArsTechnica,
16 June 2026
Cite this Entry
“Horrified.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/horrified. Accessed 24 Jun. 2026.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
