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English Lexicon

Frighten

/ˈfraɪ.tən/
verbCEFR B1 (Intermediate)Top #1500 frequency
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Comprehensive Definitions & Senses

2 senses
As verb
  1. 1

    To cause someone to feel fear or anxiety.

    "The sudden noise frightened the children."
  2. 2

    To make someone afraid or scared.

    "The horror movie frightened her so much that she couldn't sleep."
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Thesaurus & Semantic Spectrum

Synonyms (3)
Antonyms & Contrasting Words (1)

Linguistic Origin & Historical Etymology

The word 'frighten' originates from the Middle English 'frighten', which is derived from the Old English 'fyrhtian', meaning 'to frighten'. The root can be traced back to Proto-Germanic *fruhtwō, which relates to fear and has evolved in meaning over centuries to encompass causing fear or alarm.

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