intimidated
- 01 B2 Upper Intermediate
feeling frightened or lacking confidence because someone else seems more powerful or talented than you.
experiencing a loss of confidence or a sense of fear due to the presence of a person, environment, or task that appears overwhelming or superior.
Simple“I felt a bit intimidated by all the smart people at the conference.”
In context“The junior associate felt visibly intimidated by the senior partner's aggressive questioning during the cross-examination.”
Usageoften followed by the preposition 'by'
Teacher's tipLearners often confuse the -ed and -ing forms; remind them that 'intimidated' is the internal feeling of the person.
PitfallThe math test was very intimidated. The math test was very intimidating.Use 'intimidated' to describe how a person feels. Use 'intimidating' to describe the thing that causes the fear.
SynonymsAntonymsconfidentunfazed
“Sangster said the very reason she made the pact with Dean was because “I was super intimidated by her.”
“People have been attacked and intimidated at their place of work.”