terrification

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noun

An act of terrifying.

OriginEnglish terrific ← French terrifique ← Latin terrificus →
Scrabble 18
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Meanings

nounterrification (plural terrifications)

plural terrifications

  1. datedAn act of terrifying.

Origin

  1. Proto-Indo-European*tres-
  2. Proto-Indo-European*troséyeti
  3. Proto-Italic*troseō
  4. Latinterreō
  5. Latinterror
  6. Old Frenchterreur
  7. Middle Frenchterreur
  8. Middle Englishterrour
  9. Englishterror
  10. Latinterreō
  11. Proto-Indo-European*dʰeh₁-
  12. Proto-Italic*θakos
  13. Latinterrificus
  14. Frenchterrifique
  15. Englishterrific
  16. Englishterrification

From terror + -ification or alternatively terrific + -ation.

Full word history & related roots →
Cite this entry
APA

terrification. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 2, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/terrification

MLA

“terrification.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/terrification. Accessed November 2, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “terrification,” accessed November 2, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/terrification.

Source: terrification on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.