fear
noun
\
Definition of fear
(Entry 1 of 2)
fear
verbDefinition of fear (Entry 2 of 2)
Keep scrolling for more
Synonyms for fear
Synonyms: Noun
alarm (also alarum), anxiety, dread, fearfulness, fright, horror, panic, scare, terror, trepidation
Synonyms: Verb
bother, fret, fuss, stew, stress, sweat, trouble, worry
Visit the Thesaurus for More
Examples of fear in a Sentence
Noun
He was trembling with fear. unable to walk the streets without fear of being mugged They regarded their enemies with fear and hatred. I've been trying to overcome my fear of flying. The doctor's diagnosis confirmed our worst fears. The government is trying to allay fears of a recession. Employees expressed fears that the company would go out of business. He told us about all his hopes and fears. She has a morbid fear of cats.Verb
He was a cruel king who was feared and hated by his subjects. There's no need to fear.
Recent Examples on the Web: Noun
Aggressive police tactics, threats by Beijing to deploy troops and sweeping arrests of pro-democracy figures have raised fears about Hong Kong’s autonomy and drawn international condemnation. — Iain Marlow, Fortune, "Hong Kong Stocks Soar on Report That Regional Leader Will Withdraw Bill That Launched Protests," 4 Sep. 2019 The signing comes during a global battle between the U.S. and Huawei, the world’s biggest maker of network infrastructure equipment, over network security and fears of Chinese access. — Fox News, "US and Poland sign agreement to cooperate on 5G technology," 3 Sep. 2019 My anxiety and fear of getting it wrong would practically paralyze me for entire three-hour workshops. — Alyson Pomerantz, Longreads, "Anaphylaxis of the Mind," 3 Sep. 2019 Bogen said the county has had a handful of calls from people who aren’t comfortable in their own homes, including some people dealing with flooding or fear of flooding near the coast. — Anthony Man, sun-sentinel.com, "Broward County opens three storm shelters as Hurricane Dorian remains off coast," 2 Sep. 2019 This is why a fear of recession does not appear to be generating pressure on European leaders in this Brexit battle. — Peter S. Goodman, New York Times, "For Europe, the Threat of a No-Deal Brexit Comes at a Bad Time," 2 Sep. 2019 That may work out nicely for him: fear of his presidency helped bring about the peso’s crash, which in turn makes his eventual victory more likely. — The Economist, "Argentina’s beleaguered government imposes capital controls," 2 Sep. 2019 Trump’s scorn was emblematic of his unorthodox approach to trade policy, which has sent financial markets gyrating and sparked fears of a national recession. — Mike Rogoway, oregonlive, "An Oregon recession? Unconventional trade war casts a shadow," 31 Aug. 2019 Since flooding rains began in the late spring of 2018, continuing into early this year, scientists and environmentalists have been expressing fears of a hit to the bay’s comeback. — Scott Dance, baltimoresun.com, "Record rain + heat = Chesapeake Bay dead zone among biggest in decades. Crabs, fish are suffocating.," 29 Aug. 2019Recent Examples on the Web: Verb
Vitoria are a team to be feared at home, with the likes of Bruno Duarte and João Carlos Teixeira likely to pose a real threat. — SI.com, "Arsenal Europa League Fixtures: Confirmed Schedule for 2019/20," 31 Aug. 2019 But not to fear: Turner and Jonas were spotted leaving their hotel in New York with Joe and Kevin Jonas, all dressed up for the event (or at least some of the parties). — Abby Gardner, Glamour, "The J Sisters Skipped the Red Carpet at the 2019 MTV Video Music Awards—But They Still Dressed Up," 27 Aug. 2019 Excitement among a busload of people nearing the Minnesota State Fairgrounds for the Fair’s first day turned to fear when the bus crashed into a second tour bus in the Twin Cities, leaving multiple people injured. — Mara H. Gottfried, Twin Cities, "8 hospitalized when buses collide on Minnesota 280 on first day of State Fair," 22 Aug. 2019 Analysts had begun to fear that the chain was slipping into irrelevance, as traditional department stores had done. — Fortune, "Big-Box Rebound: How Target Packaged a Turnaround," 20 Aug. 2019 That there is more to learn from our differences than there is to fear. — John Archibald | [email protected], al, "Virtues learned in the South," 18 Aug. 2019 Scalzo's father assures him that won't be the case and the shoulder injury ends up not being serious, but the show doesn't touch on the legitimate reasons Scalzo might have had to fear such a development. — Jon Hale, The Courier-Journal, "In Netflix's QB1, Kentucky football's Nik Scalzo shows the high stress of recruiting," 16 Aug. 2019 Eq Guinea officials seems to fear an influx of foreigners will weaken efforts to provide jobs to its citizens, majority of whom still live in poverty. — Amindeh Blaise Atabong, Quartz Africa, "One of Africa’s wealthiest countries is building a Trump-like wall to stop migrants," 12 Aug. 2019 The resulting ambient anxiety leads many to fear being in all sorts of public places, from festivals to malls to, of course, schools. — Alia Wong, The Atlantic, "When ‘Back to School’ Means Back to Mass-Shooting Fears," 9 Aug. 2019These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'fear.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.