dread Meaning, Definition & Usage

  1. noun fearful expectation or anticipation
    apprehension; apprehensiveness.
    • the student looked around the examination room with apprehension
  2. verb be afraid or scared of; be frightened of
    fear.
    • I fear the winters in Moscow
    • We should not fear the Communists!
  3. adjective satellite causing fear or dread or terror
    dreadful; direful; horrific; fearful; frightening; terrible; dire; horrendous; awful; dreaded; fearsome.
    • the awful war
    • an awful risk
    • dire news
    • a career or vengeance so direful that London was shocked
    • the dread presence of the headmaster
    • polio is no longer the dreaded disease it once was
    • a dreadful storm
    • a fearful howling
    • horrendous explosions shook the city
    • a terrible curse

WordNet

Dread transitive verb
Etymology
AS. drdan, in comp.; akin to OS. dradan, OHG. tratan, both only in comp.
Wordforms
imperfect & past participle Dreaded; present participle & verbal noun Dreading
Definitions
  1. To fear in a great degree; to regard, or look forward to, with terrific apprehension.
    When at length the moment dreaded through so many years came close, the dark cloud passed away from Johnson's mind. Macaulay.
Dread intransitive verb
Definitions
  1. To be in dread, or great fear.
    Dread not, neither be afraid of them. Deut. i. 29.
Dread noun
Definitions
  1. Great fear in view of impending evil; fearful apprehension of danger; anticipatory terror.
    The secret dread of divine displeasure. Tillotson.
    The dread of something after death. Shak.
  2. Reverential or respectful fear; awe.
    The fear of you, and the dread of you, shall be upon every beast of the earth. Gen. ix. 2.
    His scepter shows the force of temporal power, The attribute to awe and majesty, Wherein doth sit the dread and fear of kings. Shak.
  3. An object of terrified apprehension.
  4. A person highly revered. Obs. "Una, his dear dread." Spenser.
  5. Fury; dreadfulness. Obs. Spenser.
  6. Doubt; as, out of dread. Obs. Chaucer. Syn. -- Awe; fear; affright; terror; horror; dismay; apprehension. See Reverence.
Dread adjective
Definitions
  1. Exciting great fear or apprehension; causing terror; frightful; dreadful.
    A dread eternity! how surely mine. Young.
  2. Inspiring with reverential fear; awful' venerable; as, dread sovereign; dread majesty; dread tribunal.

Webster 1913