/ fɪə(r); NAmE fɪr/ noun , verb
■ noun
[ C , U ] fear (of sb/sth) | fear (for sb/sth) | fear (that ... ) the bad feeling that you have when you are in danger, when sth bad might happen, or when a particular thing frightens you :
(a) fear of the dark / spiders / flying, etc.
Her eyes showed no fear.
The child was shaking with fear .
We lived in constant fear of losing our jobs.
her fears for her son's safety
the fear that he had cancer
The doctor's report confirmed our worst fears.
Alan spoke of his fears for the future .
•
IDIOMS
- for fear of sth / of doing sth | for fear (that) ...
- in fear of your life
- no fear
- put the fear of God into sb
- without fear or favour
—more at strike verb
■ verb
1.
to be frightened of sb/sth or frightened of doing sth :
[ vn ]
All his employees fear him.
to fear death / persecution / the unknown
Don't worry, you have nothing to fear from us.
[ v to inf ] ( formal )
She feared to tell him the truth.
[also v -ing ]
2.
to feel that sth bad might have happened or might happen in the future :
[ vn ]
She has been missing for three days now and police are beginning to fear the worst (= think that she is dead) .
[ vn - adj ]
Hundreds of people are feared dead.
[ vn to inf ]
Women and children are feared to be among the victims.
HELP NOTE : This pattern is only used in the passive.
[ vn ( that )]
It is feared (that) he may have been kidnapped.
[ v ]
Never fear / Fear not (= Don't worry) , I shall return.
[also v ( that )]
3.
I fear [ v ] ( formal ) used to tell sb that you think that sth bad has happened or is true :
They are unlikely to get here on time, I fear.
'He must be dead then?' ' I fear so .'
'She's not coming back?' ' I fear not .'
•
PHRASAL VERBS
- fear for sb/sth
••
SYNONYMS
fear
alarm ♦ apprehension ♦ fright ♦ foreboding
These are all words for the bad feeling you have when you are afraid.
fear
the bad feeling that you have when you are in danger, when sth bad might happen, or when a particular thing frightens you:
(a) fear of flying
•
She showed no fear.
alarm
fear or worry that sb feels when sth dangerous or unpleasant might happen:
The doctor said there was no cause for alarm .
apprehension
worry or fear that sth unpleasant may happen:
She felt some apprehension at seeing him again.
fright
a feeling of fear, usually sudden:
She cried out in fright.
fear or fright?
Fear is a more general feeling than fright. You can use fear , but not fright , for things that always frighten you and for things that may happen in the future : I have a fright of spiders. • his fright of what might happen . Fright is a reaction to sth that has just happened or is happening now.
foreboding
a strong feeling that sth unpleasant or dangerous is going to happen:
The letter filled him with foreboding.
PATTERNS AND COLLOCATIONS :
a feeling of fear / alarm / apprehension / foreboding
a growing sense of fear / alarm / foreboding
fear / apprehension of / about what might happen
She was shaking / trembling with fear / fright.
His eyes widened in fear / alarm / fright.
••
WORD ORIGIN
Old English fǣr calamity, danger , fǣran frighten , also revere , of Germanic origin; related to Dutch gevaar and German Gefahr danger.