Etymologically
Log in

terror

Etymology and origin of the English word terror

History Permalink
Confidence
Established
Formation
Borrowing
First attested
c. 1375
Borrowed from
Old French terrour
Ultimate origin
Latin (terreo)
Etymology tree
inherited borrowed derived
Latin terror
English terror

Pronunciation

  • IPA: /ˈtɛɹə/ (UK); /ˈtɛɹɚ/ (US)[1]

Etymology

It is Middle English terroure, borrowed from Old French terreur, terrour and directly borrowed from Latin terror (“great fear, dread”),[2][3][4] from terrēre (“to fill with fear, frighten”) (see terrible),[2][3][5] cognate with Ancient Greek τρέω (tréō, “to tremble, flee”) and Sanskrit त्रसति (trásati, “he trembles”).[2][6]

Earliest recorded meaning

Great fear: about 1375 in Barnhart and the OED.[2][7] Etymonline's first sense, from the early 15th century, is something that intimidates, an object of fear.[3]

Semantic evolution

The quality of causing dread is from the 1520s.[3] King of terrors, death, is from 1611.[7] The Reign of Terror in France, from March 1793 to July 1794, when the ruling faction executed anyone in its way, has been so called in English since 1801;[3][5] the phrase came to be used of any brutal exercise of power.[5][7] A person who causes alarm, often a naughty child, is a humorous use from 1883.[3][7] Terror bombing is recorded by 1941, of the German attack on Rotterdam,[3] and terror as violence used for political ends, short for terrorism, is a modern sense.[8][9] Old English words for terror included broga and egesa.[3]

Timeline

  • c. 1375 – intense fear.[2][7]
  • 1520s – the quality of causing dread.[3]
  • 1611 – the king of terrors.[7]
  • 1801 – the Reign of Terror.[3]
  • 1883 – a troublesome person.[3][7]
  • 1941 – terror bombing.[3]

Modern meaning

Noun

  1. Intense, overpowering fear.
  2. A person or thing that causes great fear.
  3. Violence or threats used to intimidate a population for political ends; terrorism.
  4. (informal) A troublesome or annoying person, especially a child.

Word family

References

  1. ^ Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
  2. ^ a b c d e Barnhart, Robert K. (1988), The Barnhart Dictionary of Etymology
  3. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
  4. ^ Hoad, T. F., ed. (1986), The Concise Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology, Oxford: Clarendon Press
  5. ^ a b c Cresswell, Julia (2021), Oxford Dictionary of Word Origins, 3rd ed., Oxford: Oxford University Press
  6. ^ Merriam-Webster Unabridged Dictionary (2024), online ed., Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster
  7. ^ a b c d e f g Simpson, J. A.; Weiner, E. S. C., eds. (1989), The Oxford English Dictionary, 2nd ed., Oxford: Clarendon Press
  8. ^ The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language (1992), 3rd ed., Boston: Houghton Mifflin
  9. ^ Collins English Dictionary (2023), Glasgow: HarperCollins

Related etymologies

Cite this entry

“Terror.” Etymologically, 16 Oct. 2026, etymologically.com/en/terror. Accessed 16 Oct. 2026.

Last edited on . ·