Fearful — Meaning, Definition & Synonyms

adjective /ˈfir-fəl/ fear·ful

Meaning & Definition of Fearful

Fearful (adjective)

  1. causing or likely to cause fear, fright, or alarm especially because of dangerous quality
  2. full of fear
  3. indicating or arising from fear

Fearful (adjective) — Senses, Synonyms & Antonyms

  1. causing fear

    "the fearful roar of a lion"

    similar: alarming, dire, direful, dread, dreadful, fearsome, forbidding, formidable, frightening, frightful, ghastly, hair-raising, horrendous, horrible, horrifying, intimidating, redoubtable, scary, shocking, spine-chilling, terrible, terrifying
    related: daunting, demoralizing, disconcerting, discouraging, dismaying, disquieting, distressing, disturbing, perturbing, startling, threatening, troubling, trying, unnerving, bone-chilling, creepy, eerie, weird, appalling, atrocious, awful, grisly, gruesome, hideous, horrid, macabre, monstrous, nightmarish
    near: calming, comforting, consoling, inviting, lulling, pacifying, quieting, reassuring, relaxing, soothing, tranquilizing, nonintimidating, nonthreatening

  2. easily frightened

    "the stray cat that we took in is still fearful, even around us"

    similar: fainthearted, fearsome, mousy, scary, shy, skittish, timid, timorous, tremulous
    related: chicken, chickenhearted, chicken-livered, cowardly, craven, dastardly, gutless, lily-livered, milk-livered (archaic), poltroon, pusillanimous, spineless, unheroic, yellow, jittery, jumpy, spooky, anxious, apprehensive, nervous, afraid, alarmed, horrified, panicked, panicky, panic-stricken, scared, shocked, spooked, startled, terrified, terrorized, unnerved
    opposite: adventuresome, adventurous, audacious, bold, daring, dashing, gutsy, hardy, venturesome, venturous
    near: brave, courageous, dauntless, doughty, fearless, gallant, greathearted, heroic, intrepid, lionhearted, stalwart, stout, stouthearted, undaunted, valiant, valorous, assured, confident, self-assured, self-confident, determined, firm, game, plucky, resolute, undeterred, unflinching, unswerving, mettlesome, spirited, spunky

  3. extreme in degree, power, or effect

    "the fearful wind and cold simply made being outside a miserable experience"

    similar: acute, almighty, blistering, deep, dreadful, excruciating, explosive, exquisite, fearsome, ferocious, fierce, frightful, furious, ghastly, hard, heavy, heavy-duty, hellacious, intense, intensive, keen, profound, terrible, vehement, vicious, violent
    related: accentuated, aggravated, concentrated, deepened, emphasized, enhanced, heightened, intensified, magnified, stressed, exhaustive, thorough, harsh, rigorous, severe
    opposite: light, moderate, soft
    near: feeble, weak, shallow, superficial, moderated, qualified, alleviated, eased, lightened, toned (down), abated, decreased, diminished, lessened, reduced, subdued

  4. filled with fear or dread

    "fearful of venturing out onto the dark highway, the stranded motorist decided to wait in the car for help"

    similar: affrighted, afraid, aghast, alarmed, frightened, horrified, horror-struck, hysterical, scared, scary, shocked, spooked, terrified, terrorized
    related: chicken, fainthearted, fearsome, shrinking, shy, timid, timorous, tremulant, tremulous, agitated, anxious, apprehensive, disconcerted, disquieted, disturbed, funky, jittery, jumpy, nervous, panicked, panicky, panic-stricken, perturbed, skittish, uneasy, upset, worried, phobic, appalled, dismayed, startled, cowed, daunted, intimidated, unnerved, coward, cowardly, craven, gutless, lily-livered, pusillanimous, careful, cautious, heedful, prudent, unadventurous, wary
    opposite: fearless, unafraid
    near: adventuresome, adventurous, audacious, bold, daredevil, daring, dashing, gutsy, plucky, spirited, spunky, venturesome, venturous, brave, courageous, gallant, hardy, heroic, intrepid, lionhearted, manful, stalwart, stout, stouthearted, valiant, valorous, assured, collected, composed, confident, cool, sanguine, sure, unperturbed, dauntless, resolute, undaunted

Synonyms, Thesaurus & Another Word for Fearful

The most common words with a similar meaning to Fearful:

alarming, dire, direful, dread, dreadful, fearsome, forbidding, formidable, frightening, frightful, ghastly, hair-raising, horrendous, horrible, horrifying, intimidating, redoubtable, scary, shocking, spine-chilling, terrible, terrifying, fainthearted, mousy, shy, skittish, timid, timorous, tremulous, acute, almighty, blistering, deep, excruciating, explosive, exquisite, ferocious, fierce, furious, hard

Antonyms & Opposite Words for Fearful

Words with the opposite meaning of Fearful:

adventuresome, adventurous, audacious, bold, daring, dashing, gutsy, hardy, venturesome, venturous, light, moderate, soft, fearless, unafraid

Related Words for Fearful

daunting, demoralizing, disconcerting, discouraging, dismaying, disquieting, distressing, disturbing, perturbing, startling, threatening, troubling, trying, unnerving, bone-chilling, creepy, eerie, weird, appalling, atrocious, awful, grisly, gruesome, hideous, horrid, macabre, monstrous, nightmarish, chicken, chickenhearted

Near Antonyms of Fearful

calming, comforting, consoling, inviting, lulling, pacifying, quieting, reassuring, relaxing, soothing, tranquilizing, nonintimidating, nonthreatening, brave, courageous, dauntless, doughty, gallant, greathearted, heroic, intrepid, lionhearted, stalwart, stout, stouthearted, undaunted, valiant, valorous, assured, confident

Word Forms of Fearful

Derived words: fearfully (adverb), fearfulness (noun)

Origin & Etymology of Fearful

Middle English feerful, fereful "inspiring dread, frightened," from fer fear:1 + -ful -ful:1

First known use: 14th century

Frequently Asked Questions about Fearful

What does "Fearful" mean?

"Fearful" means causing or likely to cause fear, fright, or alarm especially because of dangerous quality. As an adjective, it is defined as: causing or likely to cause fear, fright, or alarm especially because of dangerous quality. It has 4 distinct senses.

What is another word for "Fearful"?

Other words for "Fearful" include alarming, dire, direful, dread, dreadful, fearsome, forbidding and formidable. The best synonym depends on which meaning of "Fearful" you intend.

What are different ways to say "Fearful"?

There are 155 words and phrases with a similar meaning to "Fearful". Common alternatives include alarming, dire, direful, dread, dreadful, fearsome, forbidding, formidable, frightening and frightful.

What is the opposite of "Fearful"?

Antonyms of "Fearful" include adventuresome, adventurous, audacious, bold, daring, dashing, gutsy and hardy. Near antonyms include calming, comforting, consoling and inviting.

How do you use "Fearful" in a sentence?

Examples of "Fearful" in a sentence: "the fearful roar of a lion"; "the stray cat that we took in is still fearful, even around us"; "the fearful wind and cold simply made being outside a miserable experience".

Is "Fearful" a noun, verb, or adjective?

"Fearful" is an adjective.

How do you pronounce "Fearful"?

"Fearful" is pronounced /ˈfir-fəl/ and divided into syllables as fear·ful.

What is the origin of the word "Fearful"?

"Fearful" comes from Middle English feerful, fereful "inspiring dread, frightened," from fer fear:1 + -ful -ful:1. First known use: 14th century.