Meanings
verbpetrify (third-person singular simple present petrifies, present participle petrifying, simple past and past participle petrified)
present singular third person petrifies · participle present petrifying · participle past petrified · past petrified
- transitiveTo turn to stone: to harden organic matter by permeating with water and depositing dissolved minerals.
a river that petrifies any sort of wood or leaves
1799, Richard Kirwan, Geological Essays - To produce rigidity akin to stone.
- To immobilize with fright.
Synonyms: alarm, affright, appall, dismay, fray, frighten, grill, give someone the shits
- intransitiveTo become stone, or of a stony hardness, as organic matter by calcareous deposits.
- figurativelyintransitiveTo become stony, callous, or obdurate.
Like Niobe we marble grow, / And petrify with grief.
1685, John Dryden, Threnodia Augustalis1 more example
Hopes, feelings, and passion, petrify one after another; the crust of experience soon hardens over the hidden past; and who, looking on the levelled and subdued exterior, could dream of the wreck and ravage that lies below?
1837, L[etitia] E[lizabeth] L[andon], “The Result”, in Ethel Churchill: Or, The Two Brides. […], volume I, London: Henry Colburn, […], →OCLC, page 233 - figurativelytransitiveTo make callous or obdurate; to stupefy; to paralyze; to transform; as by petrification.
petrify a genius to a dunce
1728, [Alexander Pope], “(please specify the page)”, in The Dunciad. An Heroic Poem. […], Dublin; London: […] A. Dodd, →OCLC1 more example
A hideous fatalism, which ought, logically, to petrify your volition.
1874, George Eliot, letter to Mrs. Ponsonby
Synonyms & antonyms
verbTo immobilize with fright.
Similar
alarmaffrightappalldismayfrayfrightengrillgive someone the shitsharrowhorrifymake someone's blood run coldmortifyscarescare straightscare the bejeebers out ofscare the hell out ofscare the pants off ofscare the shit out ofterrorize
More synonyms by meaning
Also see
Synonym sets from Open English WordNet, CC BY 4.0.
Origin
- Ancient Greekπέτρα“rock”
- Latinpetra“rock”
- Medieval Latinpetrificāre
- Middle Frenchpétrifier
- Englishpetrify
From Middle French pétrifier, from Medieval Latin petrificāre, from Latin petra (“rock”), from Ancient Greek πέτρα (pétra, “rock”) + -ficāre, from facere (“do, make”), equivalent to petro- + -ify.
More words from Middle French, Medieval Latin, Latin
Full word history & related roots →Translations
Ancient Greek πωρόω, πωρόω
- πωρόω (pōróō)to harden organic matter
- πωρόω (pōróō)to produce rigidity akin to stone
Bulgarian вкаменявам, вкаменявам
- вкаменявам (vkamenjavam)to harden organic matter
- вкаменявам (vkamenjavam)to produce rigidity akin to stone
- вцепенявам (vcepenjavam)to immobilize with fright
- вкаменявам се (vkamenjavam se)to become stone, or of a stony hardness
- вкаменявам се (vkamenjavam se)to become stony, callous, or obdurate
Catalan petrificar, petrificar
- petrificarto harden organic matter
- petrificarto produce rigidity akin to stone
- petrificarto immobilize with fright
Chinese Mandarin 石化, 使发呆
- 石化 (shíhuà)to become stone, or of a stony hardness
- 使发呆to make callous or obdurate; to transform as by petrification
Danish forstene, forstene
- forsteneto harden organic matter
- forsteneto produce rigidity akin to stone
- forsteneto immobilize with fright
Dutch verstenen, verstenen
- verstenento harden organic matter
- verstenento produce rigidity akin to stone
- verstenento immobilize with fright
- verstarrento immobilize with fright
Finnish kivettää, kovettaa
- kivettääto harden organic matter
- kovettaato produce rigidity akin to stone
- kivettääto immobilize with fright
- jähmettääto immobilize with fright
- kivettyäto become stone, or of a stony hardness
- kovettuato become stony, callous, or obdurate
- jähmettääto make callous or obdurate; to transform as by petrification
- kovettaato make callous or obdurate; to transform as by petrification
French pétrifier, pétrifier
- pétrifierto harden organic matter
- pétrifierto produce rigidity akin to stone
- pétrifierto immobilize with fright
German versteinern, versteinern
- versteinernto harden organic matter
- versteinernto produce rigidity akin to stone
- erstarrento immobilize with fright
Greek απολιθώνω, απολιθώνω
- απολιθώνω (apolithóno)to harden organic matter
- απολιθώνω (apolithóno)to produce rigidity akin to stone
Hindi पथराना, पथराना
- पथराना (pathrānā)to produce rigidity akin to stone
- पथराना (pathrānā)to become stone, or of a stony hardness
Italian pietrificare
- pietrificareto harden organic matter
Japanese 石化する
- 石化する (sekika suru)to harden organic matter
Latin lapidesco
- lapidescoto become stone, or of a stony hardness
Polish drętwieć, zdrętwieć
- drętwiećto immobilize with fright
- zdrętwiećto immobilize with fright
- lodowaciećto immobilize with fright
- zlodowaciećto immobilize with fright
Portuguese petrificar, petrificar
- petrificarto harden organic matter
- petrificarto produce rigidity akin to stone
- petrificarto immobilize with fright
Romanian petrifica, petrifica
- petrificato harden organic matter
- petrificato produce rigidity akin to stone
- petrificato immobilize with fright
- împietrito immobilize with fright
Russian превраща́ть в ка́мень, камене́ть
- превраща́ть в ка́мень (prevraščátʹ v kámenʹ)to harden organic matter
- камене́ть (kamenétʹ)to become stone, or of a stony hardness
- окамене́ть (okamenétʹ)to become stone, or of a stony hardness
- камене́ть (kamenétʹ)to become stony, callous, or obdurate
- окамене́ть (okamenétʹ)to become stony, callous, or obdurate
Spanish petrificar, petrificar
- petrificarto harden organic matter
- petrificarto immobilize with fright
Swedish förstena, förstena
- förstenato harden organic matter
- förstenato produce rigidity akin to stone
- förstenato immobilize with fright
Tagalog nanigas
- nanigasto immobilize with fright
Turkish taşlaşmak, taşa dönmek
- taşlaşmakto harden organic matter
- taşa dönmekto harden organic matter
- taşlaştırmakto produce rigidity akin to stone
- donakalmakto immobilize with fright
- taşlaşmakto immobilize with fright
- taş kesilmekto immobilize with fright
- taşlaşmakto become stone, or of a stony hardness
- taşlaştırmakto make callous or obdurate; to transform as by petrification
Ukrainian ціпені́ти
- ціпені́ти (cipeníty)to immobilize with fright
Welsh caregu, caregu
- careguto harden organic matter
- careguto produce rigidity akin to stone
- fferruto immobilize with fright
- careguto become stone, or of a stony hardness
- fferruto become stone, or of a stony hardness
Cite this entry
APA
petrify. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 2, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/petrify
MLA
“petrify.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/petrify. Accessed November 2, 2026.
Chicago
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “petrify,” accessed November 2, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/petrify.
Source: petrify on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.