2
general::
fear
adjectives
sb’s worst/greatest fear
• Her worst fear was never seeing her children again.
an irrational fear
(= one that is not reasonable )
• He grew up with an irrational fear of insects.
a deep-seated fear
(= very strong and difficult to change )
• He exploited people’s deep-seated fears about strangers.
groundless
(= without any reason )
• As it turned out, these fears were groundless.
verbs
conquer/overcome your fear
(= stop being afraid )
• She managed to conquer her fear of flying.
shake/tremble with fear
• He was shaking with fear after being held at gunpoint.
show fear
• She was determined not to show fear.
be gripped by fear
(= be very afraid )
• We were gripped by fear as the boat was tossed around by the waves.
be paralysed with fear
(= be so afraid that you cannot move )
• Bruce was paralysed with fear when he saw the snake.
confirm sb’s fears
(= show that what you were afraid of has actually happened )
• The look on Colin’s face confirmed all my worst fears.
ease/allay/dispel sb’s fears
(= help someone stop being afraid )
• Frank eased my fears about not being able to speak the local language.
phrases
be in fear of/for your life
(= be afraid that you may be killed )
• Celia was in fear of her life when she saw the truck coming toward her.
be full of fear
• The residents are too full of fear to leave their houses.
be/live in fear of something
(= be always afraid of something )
• They were constantly in fear of an enemy attack.
have no fear of something
• He had no fear of death.
sb’s hopes and fears
• We each had different hopes and fears about the trip.
COMMON ERRORS
>>> Do not say that someone 'has fear' . Say that someone is frightened or is afraid .
transnet.ir
3
general::
fear
a feeling of being frightened:
• He was trembling with fear. • Fear of failure should not stop you trying.
terror
a feeling of great fear, because you think that something terrible is about to happen:
• She let out a scream of pure terror.
fright
a sudden feeling of fear, or a situation that makes you feel this:
• My body was shaking with fright. • You gave me a fright! • He’s had a bit of fright, that’s all.
panic
a sudden feeling of fear or nervousness that makes you unable to think clearly or behave sensibly:
• She was in such a panic that she hardly knew what she was doing! • There were scenes of sheer panic immediately following the bomb blast.
alarm
a feeling of fear or worry which shows in your voice or behaviour, because you think something bad might happen:
• When I mentioned her name, he looked up at me in alarm. • The streets were calm and there was no sign of alarm.
foreboding
a feeling that something bad or unpleasant might happen although there is no obvious reason why it should:
• She felt the same sense of foreboding she had before her father died.
phobia
a permanent strong unreasonable fear of something:
• I had a phobia about going to the dentist.
Longman-Thesaurus
4
general::
noun ADJ. deep, great, real, terrible It was the first time she had experienced real fear. | growing | irrational | unfounded, well-founded Our fears proved unfounded. VERB + FEAR experience, feel, have She did not know why she should feel such fear. | be filled with, be gripped by, be paralysed by/with, be trembling with | express, show, voice The boy showed no fear. Doctors have voiced fears that we may be facing an epidemic. | cause, fuel, instil This incident has fuelled fears of a full-scale war. the fear that her mother had instilled in her | allay, dispel, overcome The government is keen to allay the public's fears. She managed to overcome her fear. | live in The people live in fear of attack by the bandits. FEAR + VERB abate, subside When she heard the news, some of her fear subsided. | grip sb, haunt sb A sudden fear gripped him. PREP. for ~ of Nobody refused for fear of losing their job. | in ~ He ran away in fear. | out of ~ He lied out of fear. | through ~ The pupils obeyed through fear of punishment. | without ~ She stared at him without fear. | with ~ His face was white with fear. | ~ about his fear about what might happen | ~ for my fear for her safety | ~ of They have a terrible fear of failure. PHRASES fear and trepidation The men set off in fear and trepidation. | strike fear into (the heart of) sb The sound of gunfire struck fear into the hearts of the villagers., verb ADV. genuinely, greatly, really, seriously This disease is greatly feared. I really feared that this might be the end. | rightly Everyone rightly feared the coming war. VERB + FEAR seem to | begin to | have little/nothing to You have nothing to fear from him. | have reason to I have reason to fear that you might abuse your power. PREP. for We feared for their safety.
Oxford Collocations Dictionary