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Definition of "fearful" []

  • Causing or capable of causing fear; frightening: a fearful howling. (adjective)
  • Experiencing fear; frightened. See Synonyms at afraid. (adjective)
  • Feeling or inclined to feel anxiety or apprehension; timid; nervous. (adjective)
  • Indicating anxiety, fear, or terror: a fearful, nervous glance. (adjective)
  • Feeling reverence, dread, or awe. (adjective)

American Heritage(R) Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright (c) 2011 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

Use "fearful" in a sentence
  • "I. iii.176 (130,9) [left in the fearful guard] [W: fearless] Dr. Warburton has forgotten that _fearful_ is not only that which fears, but that which is feared or causes fear."
  • "Her head held high, her expression fearful, she half expected applause."
  • "But, then, two Saturdays before Christmas, 1968, I was one of three little paddyboy white kids from Brooklyn (along with Benjy and Andy, both from the same school, both in fearful awe of Alonzo the way I was, both music-freaks like me) making our way to the Fillmore East and into a sold out crowd of other paddyboy white kids ... musical thrill-seekers all, there to witness The Sam & Dave Review."