terror
- 01 B2 Upper Intermediate
a feeling of very strong fear or dread.
a state of intense, overwhelming fear or dread. Uncountable in its abstract sense.
Simple“The passengers watched in terror as the engine began to smoke.”
In context“A look of pure terror crossed his face when he realised the safety harness had not been properly secured before the climb.”
- 02 B2 Upper Intermediate
the use of violence and threats to scare people for political reasons.
the systematic use of violence and intimidation, especially against civilians, to achieve political or ideological goals.
Simple“The government promised to fight against international terror.”
In context“The global campaign against terror has led to significant changes in international security protocols and border control measures.”
- 03 C1 Advanced
a person, especially a child, who is very difficult to manage or causes a lot of trouble.
a person or thing that causes extreme annoyance or difficulty; frequently applied to unruly children.
Simple“Their youngest son is a little terror when he doesn't get his way.”
In context“The new puppy proved to be a complete terror, chewing through several expensive cables within his first week in the house.”
- 04 C1 Advanced
a famous period of extreme violence during the French Revolution.
a period of the French Revolution characterised by mass executions and state-sanctioned violence. Usually capitalised as 'the Terror'.
Simple“We studied the Terror and the fall of Robespierre in our history class.”
In context“Historians often debate the specific socio-political factors that allowed the Terror to escalate so rapidly in eighteenth-century France.”
Usage terror attack · terror attacks
“And Gaza can never again be a source of terror for Israel,” the source added.”
“We are living in a state of terror,” Hassan said.”
Etymology tree Proto-Indo-European *tres- Proto-Indo-European *-yeti Proto-Indo-European *-éyeti Proto-Indo-European *troséyeti Proto-Italic *trozeō Latin terreō Proto-Indo-European *-os Proto-Indo-European *-s Proto-Indo-European *-ōs Proto-Italic *-ōs Latin -or Latin terrorbor. Old French terreur Middle French terreurbor. Middle English terrour English terror From late Middle English terrour, from Old French terreur f (“terror, fear, dread”), from Latin terror m (“fright, fear, terror”), from terrēre (“to frighten, terrify”), from Old Latin tr̥reō, from Proto-Italic trozeō, from Proto-Indo-European tre- (“to shake”), *tres- (“to tremble”).
Etymology adapted from Wiktionary, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.