Definitions

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.

  • noun Agent noun of frighten; one who frightens.

Etymologies

Sorry, no etymologies found.

Support

Help support Wordnik (and make this page ad-free) by adopting the word frightener.

Examples

  • Although for much of the time the various teams within the city operated in tandem, respecting each other's territory, there were sporadic turf wars characterised by tit-for-tat shootings, with kneecappings a popular form of warning or 'frightener'.

    Both Sides of the Fence -A Life Under Cover Corbet, David 2002

  • Millard has little to back up his 'frightener' apart from some vague reference to some patients he woke up only for them, presumably, to have to go through the whole process again later.

    Latest news breaking news current news UK news world news celebrity news politics news 2009

  • Short of saying they make your legs fall off and turn your baby into a frog, opponents of elective caesarean sections have come out with just about any frightener, over the past few years, that they thought might arrest or reverse the continual increase in the number of women who think the NHS should help them dodge a proper labour.

    Please, render unto caesareans a little less hysteria | Catherine Bennett 2011

  • And, more realistically, a joint rate card or selling pitch for satellite TV ads and newspaper ads seems a real frightener.

    Vince Cable stitch-up leaves Telegraph Group in a tangle over BSkyB deal 2010

  • Years after succumbing to the corrosive effects of toxic industrial acid in a subterranean chase turned deadly, a brutal serial killer returns from the grave to spread mayhem and death in director Rob McKinnon's infernal frightener.

    Mr. Hell (2006) | Happy Share Scott at 5:07 AM 2009

  • The case is well made and a frightener for those who insist on running hierarchical, command and control organisations, who insist on proprietary this and secret that, and generally aren't much fun.

    Archive 2007-06-01 Clive Shepherd 2007

  • The case is well made and a frightener for those who insist on running hierarchical, command and control organisations, who insist on proprietary this and secret that, and generally aren't much fun.

    Could Wikinomics save Epic Athletic? Clive Shepherd 2007

  • Even a low-end Roomba costs a hundred bucks, and my cat-frightener budget doesn't go that deep.

    The Age of Cheap, Plastic Robots 2006

  • Even a low-end Roomba costs a hundred bucks, and my cat-frightener budget doesn't go that deep.

    The Age of Cheap, Plastic Robots 2006

  • Elkanah had been Robert Lintel's right-hand thug, a hired frightener.

    Spirits White As Lightning Lackey, Mercedes 2001

Comments

Log in or sign up to get involved in the conversation. It's quick and easy.