Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English homepage

frighten

 verb
     
fright‧en [transitive]
to make someone feel afraid [= scare]:
Don't stand so near the edge! You're frightening me.
She was frightened by the anger in his eyes.
Computers used to frighten me, but not now.
frighten somebody to death/frighten the life out of somebody (=make someone feel extremely afraid)
He drove at a speed which frightened Lara to death.

frighten somebody ↔ away

phrasal verb
to make a person or animal go away by making them feel afraid:
Terrorist activity in the area has frightened most tourists away.

frighten somebody into something

phrasal verb
to force someone to do something by making them afraid
frighten somebody into doing something
He frightened me into staying silent.

frighten somebody/something ↔ off

phrasal verb
to make a person or animal so nervous or afraid that they go away or do not do something they were going to do:
The investors were frightened off by the company's low profits that year.
Definition from the Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English
Advanced Learner's Dictionary.

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