horror

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noun

hor·rorˈhȯr-ər How to pronounce horror (audio)

ˈhär-

Synonyms ofhorror next

:painful and intense fear, dread, or dismay

astonishment giving place tohorror on the faces of the people about me—

H. G. Wells

:intense aversion or repugnance

:the quality of inspiring horror:repulsive,horrible, or dismal quality or character

contemplating thehorror of their lives—

Liam O'Flaherty

:something that inspires horror

horrors plural:a state of extreme depression or apprehension

horror

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adjective

:calculated to inspire feelings of dread or horror

ahorror movie

Synonyms

Noun

See All Synonyms & Antonyms in Thesaurus

Examples ofhorror in a Sentence

Noun There was a look ofhorror on her face. The crowd watchedin horror as the fire spread. His friends were shocked by thehorror of his death. His crimes were unspeakablehorrors. His memoirs recount thehorrors of the war.

Recent Examples on the Web

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage.Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.Send us feedback.

Noun

Triggers Sudden Bitcoin Price ‘Crisis Scenario’ Fear 'Hell Of A Summer' Became A Journey Some Didn’t ExpectInspired by a blend of coming-of-age,horror, and comedy films, Hell of a Summer follows 24-year-old camp counselor Jason Hochberg, played by Thelma and The White Lotus' Fred Hechinger.—

Simon Thompson,Forbes.com, 5 Apr. 2025No stranger to genre films, Monroe will soon be seen starring opposite Mary Elizabeth Winstead in 20th’s reimagining of the classichorrorthriller The Hand That Rocks the Cradle.—

Matt Grobar,Deadline, 3 Apr. 2025

Adjective

Last year already saw the release of ahorrorshort film based on Steamboat Willie called The Vanishing of S.S. Willie, plus the horror-comedy movie called The Mouse Trap.—

Nick Romano,EW.com, 5 Feb. 2025The actress memorably won an Oscar in 1991 for her leading role in the adaptation of Stephen King'shorrornovel Misery.—

Tommy McArdle,People.com, 10 Feb. 2025See All Example Sentences forhorror

Word History

Etymology

Noun

Middle Englishorrour, horrour, borrowed from Anglo-Frenchhorrour, horrur, borrowed from Latinhorrōr-, horror "standing stiffly, bristling (of hair), shivering (from cold or fear), dread, consternation," derivative with the abstract noun suffix-ōr- (going back to*-ōs-) from the base ofhorrēre "to be stiffly erect, bristle (of hair, weapons, plants), shudder, shiver," going back to Indo-European *ǵ^hors-éi̯e-, iterative derivative of a stem*ǵ^hers- "bristle, become stiff," whence also Sanskrithṛṣyati "(it) stands on end (of hair, from fear or joy), (s/he) rejoices"

Note: According toLexikon der indogermanischen Verben (2. Auflage, Wiesbaden, 2001) this base has fallen together with another base,*g^(w)^hers- "rejoice," in Vedic, and the outcomes are no longer completely distinguishable; theLexikon attributes to the latter base Vedichárṣate "rejoices, is excited,"ghṛ́ṣuḥ, ghṛ́ṣvih "lively, wanton," as well as Parthiangš- "be cheerful," Sogdianw-γš- "rejoice." Michiel de Vaan (Etymological Dictionary of Latin and the Other Italic Languages, Brill, 2008) posits a single base and assumes forghṛ́ṣuḥ, ghṛ́ṣvih loss of palatal quality in zero grade. Earlier etymological dictionaries, as Pokorny, connect with*ǵ^hers- and an unextended form*ǵ^her- a wide variety of nominal forms (cf.gorse,orgeat,hirsute,urchin).