petrifiedpet‧ri‧fied /ˈpetrɪfaɪd/ adjective 
I’m petrified of spiders.petrified with fright/fear He was petrified with fear when he saw the gun.► see thesaurus at frightened2petrified wood/trees etc wood, trees etc that have changed into stone over a long period of time—petrify verb [transitive]
WORD ORIGINpetrified
Origin:
1400-1500 French pétrifier, from Greek petra ‘rock’EXAMPLES FROM OTHER DICTIONARIES
- He had the gun pointed at my head. I was absolutely petrified.
- He was petrified with fear as I held my knife in front of him.
- She's a very nervous dog, and she's petrified of traffic.
- She just stood there, petrified at the thought of the crowds waiting outside.
- As I say, I was petrified!
- Firemen secured the bus with ropes to stop it tumbling over the edge before escorting the petrified passengers to safety.
- I used to be petrified of these dragons, even though I knew they probably didn't exist.
- It moved aside the earth and found the petrified wood that was the heart in the forest.
- Sitting in the rear, maybe it had felt worse, but I'd been petrified.
- Their L-shaped living rooms were graced by open fireplaces, with the latest shapes in petrified wood adorning the mantelpieces.
- There's no need to look like a petrified rabbit.
THESAURUSvery frightened
very frightened: · He looked terrified as the plane took off.· James was absolutely terrified of losing his only child.· He dragged the terrified woman into his car.
very frightened – used especially when you are so frightened that you cannot think or move: · She’s absolutely petrified of spiders.
informal very frightened: · I had to make a speech, and I was scared stiff.· She was scared to death of her father.
written if you do something in terror, you do it because you are very frightened: · People fled in terror as the building went up in flames.
Longman Language Activatorfrightened of someone or something feeling very nervous and afraid of someone or something, because you think something bad is going to happen to you because of them: · Don't be frightened, it's only thunder.· Two frightened children were hiding in a corner of the room.frightened of: · A lot of people are frightened of dentists.· Are you frightened of the dark?frightened to do something: · I was frightened to move in case the branch broke.frightened of doing something: · He was frightened of making mistakes.frightened (that): · I was frightened my parents would get divorced, and wished that there was something I could do to make them happy again. · Alice kept perfectly still, frightened that the dog might attack her.
frightened: · Don't be afraid. I won't hurt you.afraid of: · He had a terrible temper and everyone was afraid of him.· It's amazing how many people are afraid of spiders.afraid (that): · Billy was afraid his aunt would punish him if he owned up.afraid to do something: · She was afraid to speak up in front of all these important people.afraid of doing something: · I didn't tell anyone, because I was afraid of being punished (=afraid I might be punished).
especially spoken frightened: · The first time I went on a motorcycle I was really scared.scared of: · She's always been scared of heights.scared to do something: · I stood still, scared to move forward and scared to go back.scared of doing something: · I think they were all scared of offending him.scared (that): · I hate reading out my work in class - I'm scared that people are going to laugh at me.scared stiff/scared to death (=very scared): · When he came back he looked scared stiff, as if he'd seen a ghost.
extremely frightened: · The faces of the four terrified teenagers looked up at us.terrified of: · He's absolutely terrified of snakes.terrified to do something: · The little boy cowered behind the tree, terrified to make a sound.terrified (that): · I was terrified that my father would find out I had lied to him.absolutely terrified : · I couldn't move - I was absolutely terrified.
extremely frightened, especially so frightened that you cannot move: · She just stood there, petrified at the thought of the crowds waiting outside.absolutely petrified: · He had the gun pointed at my head. I was absolutely petrified.petrified of: · She's a very nervous dog, and she's petrified of traffic.be petrified with fear: · He was petrified with fear as I held my knife in front of him.
so frightened that you cannot think clearly or behave sensibly, especially when something has suddenly frightened you: · A few seconds after the explosion the street was full of panic-stricken people, fleeing in all directions.· Mr Cottle dashed in, looking panic-stricken.· In a panic-stricken attempt to free herself from Annie's grip, she snatched the scissors off the table.
to always be afraid of something unpleasant that is fairly likely to happen: · Until security can be assured, the people here will continue to live in fear.live in fear of something/doing something: · After leaking the secret document, Sarah lived in fear of being found out.live in fear (that): · A surgeon lives in constant fear that something will go wrong in an operation when he's feeling tired.
informal extremely frightened: · You must have been scared stiff when you saw the car coming straight towards you.· Helen had to go for an interview with the school Principal -- she was scared stiff.· I knew a man was following me, and I was scared out of my wits.· Some of the prisoners were only 16 or 17, and they looked scared to death.
COLLOCATIONS FROM THE ENTRY He was petrified with fear when he saw the gun.
He was petrified with fear when he saw the gun.PHRASES FROM THE ENTRY
1extremely frightened, especially so frightened that you cannot move or thinkpetrified of- Books and posters, shirts and sweatshirts and pounds of petrified wood spilled from the storage areas.
- It may be more similar to the way that petrified wood is created.
- It moved aside the earth and found the petrified wood that was the heart in the forest.
- Their L-shaped living rooms were graced by open fireplaces, with the latest shapes in petrified wood adorning the mantelpieces.
I’m petrified of spiders.petrified with fright/fear He was petrified with fear when he saw the gun.► see thesaurus at frightened2petrified wood/trees etc wood, trees etc that have changed into stone over a long period of time—petrify verb [transitive]