PANIC (panicked, panicking)

Pronunciation (US):

(GB):

IPA (US):

Irregular inflected forms: panicked    , panicking   

 Dictionary entry overview: What does panic mean? 

• PANIC (noun)
  The noun PANIC has 2 senses:

1. an overwhelming feeling of fear and anxiety

2. sudden mass fear and anxiety over anticipated events

  Familiarity information: PANIC used as a noun is rare.

• PANIC (verb)
  The verb PANIC has 2 senses:

1. be overcome by a sudden fear

2. cause sudden fear in or fill with sudden panic

  Familiarity information: PANIC used as a verb is rare.

 Dictionary entry details 

• PANIC (noun)

Sense 1

Meaning:

An overwhelming feeling of fear and anxiety

Classified under:

Nouns denoting feelings and emotions

Synonyms:

affright; panic; terror

Hypernyms ("panic" is a kind of...):

fear; fearfulness; fright (an emotion experienced in anticipation of some specific pain or danger (usually accompanied by a desire to flee or fight))

Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "panic"):

swivet (a panic or extreme discomposure)

Derivation:

panic (cause sudden fear in or fill with sudden panic)

panic (be overcome by a sudden fear)

panicky (thrown into a state of intense fear or desperation)

Sense 2

Meaning:

Sudden mass fear and anxiety over anticipated events

Classified under:

Nouns denoting stable states of affairs

Synonyms:

panic; scare

Context example:

a bomb scare led them to evacuate the building

Hypernyms ("panic" is a kind of...):

anxiety; anxiousness ((psychiatry) a relatively permanent state of worry and nervousness occurring in a variety of mental disorders, usually accompanied by compulsive behavior or attacks of panic)

Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "panic"):

red scare (a period of general fear of communists)

Derivation:

panic (cause sudden fear in or fill with sudden panic)

• PANIC (verb)

Present simple: I / you / we / they panic    ... he / she / it panics   
Past simple: panicked   
Past participle: panicked   
-ing form: panicking   

Sense 1

Meaning:

Be overcome by a sudden fear

Classified under:

Verbs of feeling

Context example:

The students panicked when told that final exams were less than a week away

Hypernyms (to "panic" is one way to...):

dread; fear (be afraid or scared of; be frightened of)

Troponyms (each of the following is one way to "panic"):

freak; freak out; gross out (lose one's nerve)

Sentence frames:

Somebody ----s
Somebody ----s PP

Sentence example:

Sam and Sue panic

Derivation:

panic (an overwhelming feeling of fear and anxiety)

Sense 2

Meaning:

Cause sudden fear in or fill with sudden panic

Classified under:

Verbs of feeling

Context example:

The mere thought of an isolation cell panicked the prisoners

Hypernyms (to "panic" is one way to...):

terrify; terrorise; terrorize (fill with terror; frighten greatly)

Cause:

panic (be overcome by a sudden fear)

Sentence frames:

Somebody ----s somebody
Something ----s somebody

Sentence example:

The bad news will panic him

Derivation:

panic (an overwhelming feeling of fear and anxiety)

panic (sudden mass fear and anxiety over anticipated events)

 Context examples 

In contrast, bupropion, an antidepressant that is not as effective in treating panic disorder, didn't lower orexin concentrations.

(The Mechanism of Panic Attacks, NIH, US)

A drug used to treat anxiety disorders and panic attacks.

(Alprazolam, NCI Dictionary)

He was in a panic at the thought of it.

(Martin Eden, by Jack London)

This accomplished, a panic came upon him, and he unwrapped them all and counted them again.

(Love of Life and Other Stories, by Jack London)

An instant later I heard him running down, and he burst into my consulting-room like a man who is mad with panic.

(The Memoirs of Sherlock Holmes, by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle)

It may also be used to treat panic or anxiety disorders and certain types of pain, and to help people quit smoking.

(Aventyl, NCI Dictionary)

Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HADS) I get sudden feelings of panic.

(HADS - I Get Sudden Feelings of Panic, NCI Thesaurus)

Panic disorder is more common in women than men.

(Panic Disorder, NIH: National Institute of Mental Health)

A disorder in which an individual experiences recurrent, unexpected panic attacks and persistent concern about having additional panic attacks.

(Panic Disorder with Agoraphobia, NCI Thesaurus)

Panic may include rapid heart rate, flushing (a hot, red face), sweating, and trouble breathing.

(Panic, NCI Dictionary)