petrify

Definitions

petr (stone) + -i- + -fy (from Latin facere, to make) = "to make into stone." The literal sense is geological: minerals slowly replace wood until it becomes rock. The figurative sense is a vivid leap — terror so intense your body freezes, as if you'd literally been turned to stone.

Why It Means This

The leap from "turn to stone" to "frighten stiff" is built on a single image: a body that cannot move. Greek myth made it concrete — one look from Medusa and you were petrified, frozen as a statue. Today the figurative sense is far more common: people are "petrified" of spiders or public speaking, while literal petrifaction belongs to fossils and geology.

Common Collocations

• 1.petrified with fear吓得僵住
• 2.petrified of spiders怕极了蜘蛛
• 3.absolutely petrified吓得魂飞魄散
• 4.stood petrified僵在原地

Example Sentences

• 1.

  Over millions of years, the buried forest was slowly petrified into stone.

• 2.

  The sudden scream petrified everyone in the room.

• 3.

  She was petrified of speaking in front of a large audience.

• 4.

  He stood petrified as the dog snarled at him.

Synonym Comparison