I. pan ‧ ic 1 S3 /ˈpænɪk/ BrE AmE noun
[ Date: 1600-1700 ; Language: French ; Origin: panique 'caused by panic' , from Greek panikos , from Pan ancient Greek god of nature, who caused great fear ]
1 . [countable usually singular, uncountable] a sudden strong feeling of fear or nervousness that makes you unable to think clearly or behave sensibly
in (a) panic
The children fled in panic.
a feeling of sheer panic (=complete panic)
She got into a panic when she couldn’t find the tickets.
The whole nation is in a state of panic following the attacks.
She suffers from terrible panic attacks.
2 . [countable usually singular, uncountable] a situation in which people are suddenly made very anxious, and make quick decisions without thinking carefully
panic over/about
the recent panic over the safety of baby milk
panic buying/selling
a wave of panic selling in Hong Kong
3 . [singular] especially British English a situation in which you have a lot to do and not much time to do it in ⇨ rush :
the usual last minute panic just before the deadline
4 . panic stations British English a situation in which everyone is busy and anxious because something needs to be done urgently:
It was panic stations here on Friday.
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COLLOCATIONS
■ verbs
▪ there was (a) panic
When the shooting started, there was panic.
▪ cause panic
The earthquake caused widespread panic.
▪ feel panic
He felt a mild panic.
▪ get into a panic
There’s no need to get into a panic.
▪ throw/send somebody into a panic
The innocent question threw her into a panic.
▪ panic breaks out (=starts among a group of people)
Suddenly, everything went dark and panic broke out.
▪ panic sets in (=starts)
Before panic could set in, she realised that the clock was fast.
▪ panic ensues formal (=happens after something else happens)
Panic ensued as people ran out of the burning building.
▪ panic rises within somebody (=someone starts to feel panic)
She felt panic rising within her.
▪ panic spreads (=starts to affect more people in more places)
Panic spread as news of the invasion reached Paris.
■ adjectives
▪ a big/huge panic
There was a big panic about the virus last year.
▪ growing/mounting/rising panic (=increasing panic)
She quickly packed a bag, trying all the time to control her mounting panic.
▪ total/sheer panic
A wave of total panic swept across her.
▪ blind panic (=a very strong feeling of fear)
He ran to the library in blind panic.
▪ sudden panic
Florrie exclaimed in sudden panic: ‘I’ve left my bag on the bus!’
▪ mild panic (=a slight feeling of panic)
There was a note of mild panic in her voice.
▪ momentary panic (=panic that does not last long)
Her momentary panic faded.
■ phrases
▪ a state of panic
She was in a constant state of panic that he would carry out his threat.
▪ a sense/feeling of panic
She looked out to sea with a rising sense of panic.
▪ a wave/surge of panic (=a feeling of panic that you suddenly have)
A sudden wave of panic overcame him.
▪ a panic attack
He had had a panic attack in the street.
• • •
THESAURUS
▪ fear a feeling of being frightened:
He was trembling with fear.
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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.
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You gave me a fright!
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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!
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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.
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The streets were calm and there was no sign of alarm.
▪ foreboding /fɔːˈbəʊdɪŋ $ fɔːrˈboʊ-/ 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 /ˈfəʊbiə $ ˈfoʊ-/ a permanent strong unreasonable fear of something:
I had a phobia about going to the dentist.
II. panic 2 BrE AmE verb ( past tense and past participle panicked , present participle panicking ) [intransitive and transitive]
to suddenly feel so frightened that you cannot think clearly or behave sensibly, or to make someone do this:
He started to panic when he saw the gun.
Don’t panic! We’ll soon get you out of there.
panic somebody into doing something
The protests became more violent and many people were panicked into leaving the country.