frighten

Verb

Verb Forms: frightened, frightening, frightens

• To make someone afraid or cause fear.
• cause fear in
  • "The stranger who hangs around the building frightens me"
• drive out by frightening
• To cause to feel fear; to scare; to cause to feel alarm or fright.
• To become scared or alarmed.

Examples

• Avery puts a sheet over her head, pretending to be a ghost to frighten Emily.
• The rare Q-tile, if played poorly, can often frighten a player into defensive moves.

Synonyms

affright, fright, scare, alarm, appall, dismay, fray, frighten, give someone the shits, grill, harrow, horrify, make someone's blood run cold, petrify, scare straight, scare the bejeebers out of, scare the pants off of, spook, terrify, terrorize

Related Words

afraid, asustar, disheartening, fear, fright