horror

A2 Topic:Emotions & Feelings

US /ˈhɔɹ.ɚ/ UK /ˈhɒɹ.ə/ See IPA manual

Freq #4206

Meanings

1

noun
A strong feeling of fear or shock.

She watched in horror as the car skidded off the road.
2

noun
Something terrible that frightens or shocks you.

The soldiers had seen the horrors of war.
3

noun
A type of book or film meant to frighten people.

He loves watching horror late at night.
4

noun
A strong feeling of dislike or disgust toward something.

She has a horror of spiders.

Thesaurus

Synonyms

4 noun · a strong feeling of dislike... repulsion

More nightmare

Word family

Forms horrors

Derived forms ecohorroreurohorrorhorror-showhorror-strickenhorror-struckhorror-thrillerhorrorcorehorrorfesthorrorfulhorroristhorrorizehorrormeister

Related forms horrendous horrible horrid horrifichorrificalhorrificationhorrify

Appears in

Phrases (1)

See all

horror movie
a film designed to frighten and unsettle the viewer

Adjective + noun

Simplified etymology

Horror comes from Latin horror, formed from horrēre, “to stand on end,” especially of hair, and “to tremble” or “shudder.” The same Latin source lies behind horrible and horrify.

Etymology

From Middle English horer, horrour, from Old French horror, from Latin horror (“a bristling, a shaking, trembling as with cold or fear, terror”), from horrere (“to bristle, shake, be terrified”). Displaced native Old English ōga.

*ǵʰers- Proto-Indo-European horer Middle English horror Old French

View etymology graph ->

Topics

Emotions & Feelings

External links

# horror

**Type:** Word
**Level:** A2
**Part of speech:** noun
**IPA (US):** /ˈhɔɹ.ɚ/
**IPA (UK):** /ˈhɒɹ.ə/
**Frequency rank:** 4206

## Meanings
1. A strong feeling of fear or shock.
2. Something terrible that frightens or shocks you.
3. A type of book or film meant to frighten people.
4. A strong feeling of dislike or disgust toward something.

## Examples
- She watched in horror as the car skidded off the road.
- The soldiers had seen the horrors of war.
- He loves watching horror late at night.
- She has a horror of spiders.

## Synonyms
- nightmare

## Derived Forms
- ecohorror
- eurohorror
- horror-show
- horror-stricken
- horror-struck
- horror-thriller
- horrorcore
- horrorfest
- horrorful
- horrorist
- horrorize
- horrormeister

## Related Forms
- horrendous
- horrible
- horrid
- horrific
- horrifical
- horrification
- horrify

## Roots and Affixes
- Root: *ǵʰers-
- Root: horer
- Root: horror

## Etymology
From Middle English horer, horrour, from Old French horror, from Latin horror (“a bristling, a shaking, trembling as with cold or fear, terror”), from horrere (“to bristle, shake, be terrified”). Displaced native Old English ōga.

## AI Etymology
Horror comes from Middle English horer, horrour, from Old French horror, from Latin horror (“a bristling, a shaking, trembling as with cold or fear, terror”), from horrere (“to bristle, shake, be terrified”). Displaced native Old English ōga. The historical line also includes *ǵʰers- (Proto-Indo-European). In current use, the main senses are “A strong feeling of fear or shock” and “Something terrible that frightens or shocks you”.

## Topics
- Emotions & Feelings

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