ter‧ror W3 / terə $ -ər / 名词
1 fear [不可数名词] a feeling of extreme fear
in terror
People fled in terror as fire tore through the building.
Shots rang out, and I screamed in terror .
We lived in terror of our father when he was drinking.
There was a look of sheer terror (= complete terror ) on his face.
strike terror into somebody/sb’s heart
The sound of enemy planes struck terror into our hearts.
2 frightening situation [可数名词] an event or situation that makes people feel extremely frightened, especially because they think they may die
terror of
the terrors of war
Death holds no terrors for (= does not frighten ) me.
3 violent action [不可数名词] violent action for political purposes 同义词 terrorism :
The resistance movement started a campaign of terror .
The Red Army Faction tried to undermine the state by terror tactics .
Pol Pot’s reign of terror in Cambodia
4 person [可数名词] informal a child who is difficult to control :
That Johnson kid’s a real little terror!
→ reign of terror at reign 1 ( 4 ) , → a holy terror at holy ( 4 )
COLLOCATIONS
形容词
sheer/pure terror (= complete and total terror ) The horse galloped off in sheer terror down the path.
absolute/stark terror (= extreme terror ) On his face was an expression of absolute terror.
mortal terror literary (= very great terror ) The crew was in mortal terror of drowning.
短语
strike terror into sb’s heart His fearsome appearance strikes terror into the hearts of his enemies.
flee in terror The children fled in terror as the barn caught fire.
scream/shriek in terror She jumped to her feet, screaming in terror.
live in terror Everyone lived in terror of the religious police.
动词
inspire terror The main aim of suicide bombers is to inspire terror in the population.
THESAURUS
fear a feeling of being frightened : He was trembling with fear. | 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. | You gave me a fright! | 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! | 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. | The streets were calm and there was no sign of alarm.
foreboding / fɔbəʊdɪŋ $ fɔrboʊ- / 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 / fəʊbiə $ foʊ- / a permanent strong unreasonable fear of something : I had a phobia about going to the dentist.