Added 9 October 2026
dread
/dɹɛd/ noun
In Latin: formīdō, vereor, timeō Wiktionary
noun Definition from WordNet 3.1, Princeton University. Pronunciation from Wiktionary, via Kaikki.org. More about dread at Wordnik → Where our words come from →
-
Fearful expectation or anticipation.
the student looked around the examination room with apprehension
verb
adjective
Origin
From Middle English dreden, from Old English drǣdan (“to fear, dread”), aphetic form of ondrǣdan (“to fear, dread”), from Proto-West Germanic *andarādan, equivalent to Old English and- + rǣdan (whence read); corresponding to an aphesis of earlier adread. Akin to Old Saxon antdrādan, andrādan (“to fear, dread”), Old High German intrātan (“to fear”), Middle High German entrāten (“to fear, dread, frighten”).
From Wiktionary, via Kaikki.org (CC BY-SA)