terrified 1 of 2

adjective

as in frightened
filled with fear or dread terrified dogs hiding under the couch

Synonyms & Similar Words

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

terrified

2 of 2

verb

past tense of terrify
as in scared
to strike with fear the prospect of speaking in front of a huge crowd of people absolutely terrifies me

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 terrified
Adjective
Instead, coaches have become more and more terrified through the years of seeing their players getting hurt during largely meaningless games in August. — Rob Reischel, Forbes.com, 29 Aug. 2026 Tempe police ultimately convinced the couple, who were initially too terrified to report the incident, to share what had happened to them, documents said. — Perry Vandell, AZCentral.com, 26 Aug. 2026 There, a terrified teenage girl would be filmed fleeing before she was consumed by a blinding flash of light and then found dead, bearing unexplained marks on her body. — Stacy Perman, Los Angeles Times, 20 Aug. 2026 During the attack, terrified students huddled together under their desks, sobbing as gunshots rang out nearby, video filmed inside a classroom and verified by CNN showed. — Helen Regan, CNN Money, 7 Aug. 2026 At a news conference, Twin Falls police released dramatic surveillance video that showed terrified employees diving for cover and shielding one another. — Emily Shapiro, ABC News, 7 Aug. 2026 Fuelled by unhinged online hate and anti-Israel extremism, total violent hate crimes skyrocketed by 97% since 2022, forcing terrified Jewish communities around the world into hiding. — Staff, FOXNews.com, 30 July 2026 The child runs back inside the bodega seeking safety before collapsing near the front counter as terrified customers scramble for cover. — Nicholas Williams, New York Daily News, 26 July 2026 Appropriately terrified, Russ jumps backward, shattering the window. — Emma Banks, PEOPLE, 22 July 2026
Verb
Looking back on taking over a character so closely associated with Parton, Hilty once admitted that the prospect of playing Doralee with Parton watching initially terrified her. — Dave Quinn, PEOPLE, 26 Aug. 2026 Jaylen Edgar, the teenager tried for the 2024 Halloween mass shooting in downtown Orlando that killed two, injured several others and terrified thousands, was found guilty of all charges Monday. — Cristóbal Reyes, The Orlando Sentinel, 24 Aug. 2026 Jurors in 2025 failed to reach verdicts in the case that terrified Davis in late April and early May 2023. — Darrell Smith, Sacbee.com, 20 Aug. 2026 The first person confronted by Hughes appeared to be terrified. — Louis Casiano, FOXNews.com, 20 Aug. 2026 Video shows the moment terrified people ran for cover as the shots rang out. — Emily Shapiro, ABC News, 17 Aug. 2026 He is terrified by it, but at the same time tries to use this instrument of terror so as to be master of it in his turn. — Jan Tumlir, Artforum, 5 Aug. 2026 Selling meant losing all of that in one signature, and some deep, unspoken part of her was terrified of what came next. — Lien De Pau, Forbes.com, 29 July 2026 While some car companies have lobbied the government, terrified, asking to build protective walls to fend off cheap Chinese competition, others have looked at the problem from a different angle, trying to meet the moment. — Jonathan M. Gitlin, ArsTechnica, 21 July 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for terrified
  1. frightened
  2. scared
  3. afraid
  4. startled
  5. horrified
  6. shocked
  7. alarmed
  8. fearful
Adjective
  • In the second test, 12 dogs were shown happy faces, as well as sad, frightened, and angry ones.
    — Michele Laufik, Martha Stewart, 28 Aug. 2026
  • Hilton’s sister, Barbara Giarraffa, frightened fans and TikTok moderators were among those who called authorities.
    — Emily St. Martin, Los Angeles Times, 21 Aug. 2026
Definition of frightened
Verb
  • The size of this verdict scared Meta into recently settling a similar case brought by 47 other states for a total that could reach $18 billion.
    — Schuyler Moore, Forbes.com, 30 Aug. 2026
  • This would have been less than a mile from the nesting pine and might have scared the eagles away.
    — Alex Ross, New Yorker, 24 Aug. 2026
Definition of scared
Adjective
  • Trust your board, adapt to your league mates and don’t be afraid to take the swings that can win you the league.
    — Jonathan Rubin, Charlotte Observer, 2 Sep. 2026
  • Brian Austin Green isn’t afraid to talk about what happens to men after 50.
    — Ryan Coleman, Entertainment Weekly, 1 Sep. 2026
Definition of afraid
Verb
  • This horror movie mostly just smelled of fake fog from a community theater production and occasionally you were startled by random bursts of air, once again pulling you from the events on screen.
    — Meredith G. White, AZCentral.com, 28 Aug. 2026
  • Of those who were injured, officials said that many were hurt while falling down or hitting themselves against furniture after being startled by the earthquake while sleeping.
    — Desiree Anello, PEOPLE, 23 Aug. 2026
Definition of startled
Adjective
  • When Tae-ha starts a fire that erupts into an explosion, a horrified Eun-sae begins to remember her life before amnesia.
    — Kayti Burt, Time, 7 Aug. 2026
  • In one early scene, a horrified Pam stares into her bathroom mirror, covered head to toe in blood.
    — Nick Romano, Entertainment Weekly, 13 July 2026
Definition of horrified
Adjective
  • The man who was shocked was taken to Vista Medical Center East in Waukegan with life-threatening injuries.
    — Adam Harrington, CBS News, 18 Aug. 2026
  • But something fascinating was happening behind the scenes, coinciding with the disaster that had sent Olin overseas and left her bandmates, Augustin and Nathan Slone — located in New York City — shocked.
    — Julius Miller, Los Angeles Times, 14 Aug. 2026
Definition of shocked
Adjective
  • The proposal to paint the building has alarmed preservationists, architects, historians and others who argue that granite is not meant to be painted and that paint would trap moisture and degrade the stone.
    — Gary Fields, Los Angeles Times, 18 Aug. 2026
  • Chan's death comes after celebrity blogger Perez Hilton also alarmed fans on a TikTok livestream when police were called to his home after reports of self-harm.
    — Moises Mendez II, USA Today, 11 Aug. 2026
Definition of alarmed
Adjective
  • Yet these survivors are so hard-wired to be fearful of their neighbors that Hig and Cima’s rusty, tentative flirtation takes place under the gaze of her daddy’s gun, a heck of a chaperone.
    — Amy Nicholson, Los Angeles Times, 28 Aug. 2026
  • The regime’s final refuge now lies in the self-deception of fearful nations that still believe accommodating aggression can secure a durable peace.
    — Christian Datoc, The Washington Examiner, 24 Aug. 2026
Definition of fearful

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terrified
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Cite this Entry

“Terrified.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/terrified. Accessed 4 Sep. 2026.

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