The meaning of FRIGHTEN is to make afraid : terrify. How to use frighten in a sentence.

1. to make afraid or fearful; throw into a fright; terrify; scare. 2. to drive by scaring (usu. fol. by away, off, etc.): to frighten away pigeons from the roof. 3. to become frightened: a timid child who frightens …

Jan 20, 2026 · From Middle English *frightenen, equivalent to fright +‎ -en. frighten (third-person singular simple present frightens, present participle frightening, simple past and past participle frightened) …

Definition of frighten verb in Oxford Advanced American Dictionary. Meaning, pronunciation, picture, example sentences, grammar, usage notes, synonyms and more.

frighten someone to deathThe noise frightened me to death (= made me feel extremely afraid). frighten someone out of someone’s witsHe sneaked up behind me and frightened me out of my wits (= made …

Frighten, alarm, scare, terrify, terrorize, appall all mean to arouse fear in people or animals. To frighten is to shock with sudden, startling, but usually short-lived fear, especially that arising from the …

What does frighten mean? This dictionary definitions page includes all the possible meanings, example usage and translations of the word frighten. To disturb with fear; to throw into a state of alarm or …

Bad economic news has frightened people out of putting their money in the stock market. Are you frightened [= afraid] of dogs? There were frightening noises outside my tent. The car came …

To frighten is to make someone feel afraid. Your new look — pink hair, tattoos, and piercings — will probably frighten your grandparents.

Find 1,106 synonyms for frighten and other similar words that you can use instead based on 2 separate contexts from our thesaurus.