alarm

[uh-lahrm]

noun

1. a sudden fear or distressing suspense caused by an awareness of danger; apprehension; fright.

   Synonyms: panic, terror, consternation

2. any sound, outcry, or information intended to warn of approaching danger.

   Paul Revere raced through the countryside raising the alarm that the British were coming.

3. an automatic device that serves to call attention, to rouse from sleep, or to warn of fire, smoke, an intruder, etc.

4. a warning sound; signal for attention.

5. Animal Behavior.,  any sound, outcry, chemical discharge, action, or other signal that functions to draw attention to a potential predator.

6. Fencing.,  an appeal or a challenge made by a step or stamp on the ground with the advancing foot.

7. Archaic.,  a call to arms.

verb (used with object)

1. to make fearful or apprehensive; distress.

2. to warn of danger; rouse to vigilance and swift measures for safety.

3. to fit or equip with an alarm or alarms, as for fire, smoke, or robbery.

   to alarm one's house and garage.

alarm

/ əˈlɑːm /

verb

1. to fill with apprehension, anxiety, or fear

2. to warn about danger; alert

3. to fit or activate a burglar alarm on a house, car, etc

noun

1. fear or terror aroused by awareness of danger; fright

2. apprehension or uneasiness

   the idea of failing filled him with alarm

3. a noise, signal, etc, warning of danger

4. any device that transmits such a warning

   a burglar alarm

5. 1. the device in an alarm clock that triggers off the bell or buzzer

   2. short for alarm clock

6. archaic,  a call to arms

7. fencing a warning or challenge made by stamping the front foot

Other Word Forms

• alarming adjective
• alarmingly adverb
• alarmable adjective
• alarmedly adverb
• prealarm verb (used with object)
• unalarmed adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of alarm¹

1350–1400; Middle English alarme, alarom < Middle French < Old Italian allarme, noun from phrase all'arme to (the) arms. See arm ²

Word History and Origins

Origin of alarm¹

C14: from Old French alarme, from Old Italian all'arme to arms; see _arm ²

Idioms and Phrases

see false alarm.

Synonym Study

See fear. See frighten.

Example Sentences

“And so through the night went his cry of alarm / To every Middlesex village and farm,” Henry Wadsworth Longfellow famously wrote, declaring Revere’s warning “a word that shall echo forevermore!”

From Salon

Andrew Burns, the deputy chair of the Accounts Commission, described the report as "alarming" and said taxpayers would be troubled at how their money was being spent.

From BBC

“These findings send perhaps the most alarming message yet about the impact of climate change on our water resources,” said Jay Famiglietti, a hydrologist and professor at Arizona State University who co-authored the study.

From Los Angeles Times

They expressed alarm over the "torture to silence opposition and critics" ahead of the elections, and called on the government to "immediately" stop it.

From BBC

Where previously they have struggled to find the tempo, most alarming here was the inability to halt their slide.

From BBC

Related Words

• anxiety 
• apprehension 
• consternation 
• dismay 
• dread 
• horror 
• nervousness 
• panic 
• scare 
• tension 
• terror 
• trepidation 
• unease 
• uneasiness www.thesaurus.com

When To Use

What does alarm mean?

Alarm is a sudden feeling of fear or suspense caused by an awareness of danger, as in The pirates boarding the ship filled the captain with alarm.An alarm is any sound or cry that is meant to alert someone. It can also be the device that produces the alarm, such as an alarm clock. Sounding the alarm means to activate a siren, bell, or a repeated verbal call, usually projected from a speaker of some kind.To alarm someone is to make them fearful or distressed, as in My parents alarmed me when they started talking about moving south.To alarm also means to warn someone about danger.Example: Not to alarm you, but I feel like I might need to go to the emergency room.