Word forms: plural, 3rd person singular presenttense scares, present participle scaring, past tense, past participle scared
1. verb
If something scares you, it frightens or worries you.
You're scaring me. [VERB noun]
What scares me most is that I'm going to end up not being married. [VERB noun]
The prospect of failure scares me rigid. [VERB noun adjective]
It scared him to realise how close he had come to losing everything. [VERB noun to-infinitive]
See scares the life out of you
2. singular noun
If a sudden unpleasant experience gives you a scare, it frightens you.
Don't you realize what a scare you've given us all?
We got a bit of a scare.
Synonyms: fright, shock, start, turn [informal] More Synonyms of scare
3. countable noun [oft noun NOUN]
A scare is a situation in which many people are afraid or worried because they think something dangerous is happening which will affect them all.
He's had a prostate cancer scare.
Despite the scare there are no plans to withdraw the drug.
4. countable noun [usually noun NOUN]
A bomb scare or a security scare is a situation in which there is believed to be a bomb in a place.
Despite many recent bomb scares, no one has yet been hurt.
...a security scare over a suspect package.
Synonyms: alert, warning, alarm More Synonyms of scare
5. See also scared
Phrasal verbs:
See scare away
See scare off
See scare up
More Synonyms of scare
scare in British English
(skɛə)
verb
1.
to fill or be filled with fear or alarm
2. (tr; often foll by away or off)
to drive (away) by frightening
3. (transitive) US and Canadian informal(foll by up)
a.
to produce (a meal) quickly from whatever is available
b.
to manage to find (something) quickly or with difficulty
brewers need to scare up more sales
noun
4.
a sudden attack of fear or alarm
5.
a period of general fear or alarm
adjective
6.
causing (needless) fear or alarm
a scare story
Derived forms
scarer (ˈscarer)
noun
Word origin
C12: from Old Norse skirra; related to Norwegian skjerra, Swedish dialect skjarra
scare in American English
(skɛr)
verb transitiveWord forms: scared or ˈscaring
1.
to fill with fear or terror; esp., to frighten suddenly or startle; terrify
verb intransitive
2.
to become frightened, esp. suddenly
a person who scares easily
noun
3.
a sudden fear or panic; attack of fright, often unreasonable
4.
a state of widespread fear or panic
a war scare
SIMILAR WORDS: ˈfrighten
Idioms:
scare away
scare up
Word origin
ME skerren < ON skirra, to scare, make timid < skjarr, timid, prob. < IE base *(s)ker-, to jump > L scurra, buffoon
More idioms containing
scare
scare the living daylights out of someone
scare someone witless
scare someone out of their wits
Examples of 'scare' in a sentence
scare
We were told it was a bomb scare.
The Sun (2014)
Why do older people scare more easily?
Times, Sunday Times (2006)
Their one scare came in freak circumstances.
Times, Sunday Times (2015)
We recall that something hurt or scared us and these memories help to trigger our nervous system.
Times, Sunday Times (2010)
Maybe writers are a bit scared of those emotions and where they lead.
Times, Sunday Times (2010)
It was so loud and it really scared me.
The Sun (2013)
What will be the media scare story?
Times, Sunday Times (2010)
Why is my son so scared of food?
Times, Sunday Times (2007)
He was nervous to talk to anyone and was scared of being hurt.
Times, Sunday Times (2009)
Witnesses are too scared to come forward.
Times, Sunday Times (2014)
Yet too many people are scared to become ill.
Times, Sunday Times (2014)
The prospect of counselling scared me.
Times, Sunday Times (2013)
You may end up scaring yourself out of the garden, too.
Times, Sunday Times (2006)
It has been a nasty scare, and it is not yet over.
Times, Sunday Times (2015)
I await the first scare story about passive coffee consumption.
Times, Sunday Times (2007)
Critics fear that the big-budget failure will scare movie moguls away from investing in original scripts or new stories.
Times, Sunday Times (2015)
She said: 'The attack has really scared me.
The Sun (2014)
They survived a scare against Wales in the quarterfinal and overcame France to reach the final.
Times, Sunday Times (2015)
In other languages
scare
British English: scare /skɛə/ NOUN
If someone or something gives you a scare, they frighten you.
Don't you realize what a scare you gave us all?
American English: scare
Arabic: ذُعْر
Brazilian Portuguese: susto
Chinese: 害怕
Croatian: strah
Czech: leknutí
Danish: skræk
Dutch: schrik
European Spanish: susto miedo
Finnish: säikähdys
French: peur
German: Schreck
Greek: τρομάρα
Italian: spavento
Japanese: 恐怖
Korean: 두려움
Norwegian: skrekk
Polish: strach
European Portuguese: susto
Romanian: sperietură
Russian: испуг
Latin American Spanish: susto
Swedish: panik
Thai: ความหวาดกลัว
Turkish: panik
Ukrainian: страх
Vietnamese: sự sợ hãi
British English: scare /skɛə/ VERB
If something scares you, it frightens or worries you.
You're scaring me.
American English: scare
Arabic: يُرَوِّعُ
Brazilian Portuguese: assustar
Chinese: 害怕
Croatian: uplašiti
Czech: lekat
Danish: skræmme
Dutch: laten schrikken
European Spanish: espantar
Finnish: pelästyttää
French: effrayer
German: erschrecken
Greek: τρομάζω
Italian: spaventare
Japanese: 怖がらせる
Korean: 겁주다
Norwegian: skremme
Polish: nastraszyć
European Portuguese: assustar
Romanian: a speria
Russian: пугать
Latin American Spanish: espantar
Swedish: skrämma
Thai: หวาดกลัว
Turkish: korkutmak
Ukrainian: лякати
Vietnamese: làm kinh hãi
All related terms of 'scare'
scare off
If you scare off or scare away a person or animal, you frighten them so that they go away.
scare up
If you scare up something, you provide, produce, or obtain it, often when it is difficult to do so or when you do not have many resources .
bomb scare
an alarm arising from the fear that a bomb may have been left in a place
scare away
to drive away or off by frightening
scare story
A scare story is something that is said or written to make people feel frightened and think that a situation is much more unpleasant or dangerous than it really is.
health scare
a state of alarm caused by a revelation concerning public heath
scare quotes
quotation marks placed around a word or phrase to indicate that it should not be taken literally or automatically accepted as true
scare tactics
tactics designed to cause fear or alarm
scare someone witless
to make someone very frightened or worried
scare the pants off
to scare extremely
scare someone out of their wits
to make someone very frightened or worried
scare the living daylights out of
If someone or something scares the living daylights out of you, they make you feel extremely scared .
scare the living daylights out of someone
to frighten someone very much
bore the pants off someone
to bore, scare , or charm someone a lot
frighten the life out of someone
to frighten someone a great deal
Chinese translation of 'scare'
scare
(skɛəʳ)
vt
使害怕 (shǐ hàipà)
n(c)
(= fright)
to give sb/have a scare把某人吓(嚇)了一跳/吓(嚇)了一跳 (bǎ mǒurén xiàle yī tiào/xiàle yī tiào)
(= public panic) 恐慌 (kǒnghuāng) (阵(陣), zhèn)
a bomb/security scare炸弹(彈)/安全恐慌 (zhàdàn/ānquán kǒnghuāng)
(verb)
Definition
to frighten or be frightened
She's just trying to scare me.
Synonyms
frighten
Most children are frightened by the sight of blood.
alarm
We could not see what had alarmed him.
terrify
The thought of a slow, painful death terrified me.
panic
The dogs were panicked by the noise.
shock
startle
The telephone startled him.
intimidate
Attempts to intimidate people into voting for them failed.
dismay
The committee was dismayed by what it had been told.
daunt
Nothing evil could daunt them.
terrorize
The intruders terrorized the government employees.
put the wind up (someone) (informal)
give (someone) a fright
give (someone) a turn (informal)
scare the bejesus out of (informal)
affright (archaic)
1 (noun)
Definition
a sudden attack of fear or alarm
We got a bit of a scare.
Synonyms
fright
The snake gave everyone a fright.
shock
It gave me quite a shock to see his face on the screen.
start
turn (informal)
It gave me quite a turn.
2 (noun)
Definition
a period of general fear or alarm
an apparently endless series of public health scares
Synonyms
panic
The earthquake has caused panic among the population.
hysteria
No one could help getting carried away by the hysteria.
3 (noun)
a security scare over a suspect package
Synonyms
alert
Due to a security alert, the train did not stop at our station.
warning
She came into my room without warning.
alarm
As soon as the door opened he heard the alarm go off.
Additional synonyms
in the sense of alarm
Definition
to fill with fear
We could not see what had alarmed him.
Synonyms
frighten,
shock,
scare,
panic,
distress,
terrify,
startle,
rattle,
dismay,
daunt,
unnerve,
terrorize,
put the wind up (informal),
give (someone) a turn (informal),
scare the bejesus out of (informal),
make (someone's) hair stand on end
in the sense of alarm
Definition
a device that transmits a warning
As soon as the door opened he heard the alarm go off.
Synonyms
danger signal,
warning,
bell,
alert,
siren,
alarm bell,
hooter,
distress signal,
tocsin
in the sense of daunt
Nothing evil could daunt them.
Synonyms
discourage,
alarm,
shake,
frighten,
scare,
terrify,
cow,
intimidate,
deter,
dismay,
put off,
subdue,
overawe,
frighten off,
dishearten,
dispirit
Synonyms of 'scare'
scare
Explore 'scare' in the dictionary
Additional synonyms
in the sense of dismay
Definition
to fill with alarm or depression
The committee was dismayed by what it had been told.
Synonyms
alarm,
frighten,
scare,
panic,
distress,
terrify,
appal,
startle,
horrify,
paralyse,
unnerve,
put the wind up (someone) (informal),
give (someone) a turn (informal),
affright,
fill with consternation
in the sense of hysteria
Definition
any uncontrolled emotional state, such as of panic, anger, or excitement
No one could help getting carried away by the hysteria.
Synonyms
frenzy,
panic,
madness,
agitation,
delirium,
hysterics,
unreason
in the sense of intimidate
Definition
to subdue or influence (someone) through fear
Attempts to intimidate people into voting for them failed.
Synonyms
frighten,
pressure,
threaten,
alarm,
scare,
terrify,
cow,
bully,
plague,
menace,
hound,
awe,
daunt,
harass,
subdue,
oppress,
persecute,
lean on (informal),
coerce,
overawe,
scare off (informal),
terrorize,
pressurize,
browbeat,
twist someone's arm (informal),
tyrannize,
dishearten,
dispirit,
scare the bejesus out of (informal),
affright (archaic),
domineer
in the sense of shock
Definition
a sudden and violent emotional disturbance
It gave me quite a shock to see his face on the screen.
Synonyms
start,
scare,
fright,
turn (informal),
jolt
in the sense of startle
Definition
to slightly surprise or frighten someone
The telephone startled him.
Synonyms
surprise,
shock,
alarm,
frighten,
scare,
agitate,
take (someone) aback,
make (someone) jump,
give (someone) a turn (informal),
scare the bejesus out of (informal)
in the sense of terrify
Definition
to frighten greatly
The thought of a slow, painful death terrified me.
Synonyms
frighten,
scare,
petrify,
alarm,
intimidate,
terrorize,
scare to death,
put the fear of God into,
make your hair stand on end,
fill with terror,
make your flesh creep,
make your blood run cold,
scare the bejesus out of (informal),
frighten out of your wits
in the sense of terrorize
Definition
to make (someone) very frightened
The intruders terrorized the government employees.
Synonyms
terrify,
alarm,
frighten,
scare,
intimidate,
petrify,
scare to death,
strike terror into,
put the fear of God into,
fill with terror,
scare the bejesus out of (informal),
frighten out of your wits,
inspire panic in
in the sense of turn
Definition
a shock or surprise
It gave me quite a turn.
Synonyms
shock,
start,
surprise,
scare,
jolt,
fright
in the sense of warning
Definition
a hint, threat, or advance notice of a possible danger or problem