Fears & phobias
B1 Upper-Intermediate • Vocabulary
Useful adjectives, nouns and verb phrases to talk about fear, phobias and how people react when they are scared.
1. Adjectives: feeling afraid
-
scared / afraid / frightened (of)
– feeling fear or discomfort when you see or think about something.
Lucy is scared of dogs, so she crosses the street when she sees one. -
terrified / petrified (of)
– extremely frightened; a much stronger feeling than “scared”.
Cara is petrified of mice and screams whenever she sees one. -
horrified (by)
– very shocked and upset, often because something is frightening or very unpleasant.
I was horrified when I discovered that someone had broken into my car. -
scary / frightening
– describing something that makes you feel afraid.
For me, deep water is really scary because I can’t swim well. -
terrifying
– extremely scary; causing very strong fear.
Standing on the edge of the cliff was absolutely terrifying. -
scared to death
– (idiom) extremely afraid at a particular moment.
When the dog suddenly started barking behind me, I was scared to death. -
panicky
– feeling nervous and anxious, so you start acting without thinking clearly.
She became panicky when she realised she was lost in the forest. -
irrational (fear)
– not logical or reasonable; stronger than the situation requires.
My brother has an irrational fear of butterflies.
2. Nouns: fear, reactions & phobias
-
fear (of)
– a feeling of being afraid; the noun form of “afraid”.
My mother has a fear of flying and never travels by plane. -
fright
– a sudden, strong feeling of fear.
I got a fright when the cat jumped out from behind the door. -
terror
– an intense, extreme form of fear.
The sight of a huge spider fills him with terror. -
dread
– a strong feeling of fear about something that may happen in the future.
She feels dread every time she has to visit the dentist. -
bogey / bogie
– something many people fear or worry about, often more than is reasonable.
For some people, public speaking is a real bogey. -
bogeyman
– an imaginary monster or evil spirit used to frighten children.
Parents sometimes say, “Be good or the bogeyman will come.” -
cold sweat
– sweat caused by extreme fear or worry; often in the phrase break out in a cold sweat.
When I heard strange footsteps at night, I broke out in a cold sweat. -
chill / the chills
– a sudden feeling of fear or anxiety that makes you feel cold or shaky.
That horror film gave me the chills and sent a chill down my spine. -
phobia
– a strong, irrational fear of a particular thing or situation.
Her phobia of needles makes blood tests very stressful. -
claustrophobia
– an irrational fear of small or enclosed spaces.
Because of his claustrophobia, he never uses lifts. -
arachnophobia
– an extreme fear of spiders.
She has arachnophobia and cannot even look at photos of spiders. -
fear of heights
– a strong fear of being in high places.
His fear of heights stops him from crossing high bridges. -
haunted house
– a house that people believe has ghosts in it.
The children were too scared to go into the haunted house.
3. Verbs & idioms: reacting to fear
-
scare / frighten (someone)
– to make someone feel afraid.
The loud thunder really scares my little brother. -
spook (someone)
– to make someone feel nervous or afraid in a mysterious or “ghostly” way.
He tried to spook his sister by telling her their house was haunted. -
panic
– to become so afraid or anxious that you cannot think clearly.
Sam panicked during the fire drill and forgot where the exit was. -
freak out
– to react very strongly emotionally, often because of fear or shock.
Jake freaked out when he heard strange noises in the basement. -
startle (someone)
– to surprise someone suddenly and give them a small fright.
I didn’t mean to startle you – I’ll knock next time. -
make (someone) jump
– to suddenly shock or frighten someone so they move.
The car horn made me jump. -
give (someone) the creeps
– to make someone feel nervous, afraid or disgusted.
Old empty houses give me the creeps. -
lose your nerve
– to suddenly lose the courage or confidence to do something difficult.
When she reached the top of the diving board, she lost her nerve. -
overcome / conquer a fear
– to control a fear so that it no longer stops you from doing things.
With practice, he finally overcame his fear of speaking in public.
Feelings & reactions
Fears • Phobias • Idioms
At B1 level you should be able to describe what you are afraid of, how strong the feeling is, and how you react in scary situations.
Exercises:
Fears & phobias
Choose the correct option to complete each sentence below.
1
I feel a little
when I walk home alone at night, but I still do it.
Correct:
Scared = a bit afraid or frightened.
2
In everyday English, we often say “I’m
of…” when we talk about something that makes us feel fear.
Correct:
Afraid = feeling fear or worry about something.
3
The child looked very
when the lights suddenly went out in the room.
Correct:
Frightened = very afraid, often because something sudden happens.
4
She is
of flying, so she always travels by train if she can.
Correct:
Terrified = extremely frightened.
5
When she heard the footsteps behind her, she stood completely
and couldn’t move at all.
Correct:
Petrified = so frightened that you feel unable to move.
6
We were
when we saw the news about the accident on TV.
Correct:
Horrified = very shocked and upset by something terrible.
7
That was a really
movie – I couldn’t sleep afterwards.
Correct:
Scary = causing fear; making you feel afraid.
8
It was a very
experience when the lift suddenly stopped between floors.
Correct:
A frightening experience = something that makes you feel a lot of fear.
9
For some people, the idea of being alone in the dark in a forest is
– they feel an extreme kind of fear.
Correct:
Terrifying = extremely scary or frightening.
10
When I heard someone trying to open the door in the middle of the night, I was
and could hardly breathe.
Correct:
Scared to death = an informal phrase meaning extremely frightened.
11
He gets very
in small spaces and starts breathing very fast.
Correct:
Panicky = feeling or showing sudden, uncontrolled fear.
12
An
is a fear that doesn’t make logical sense and is not based on real danger.
Correct:
An irrational (fear) is a fear that is not reasonable or logical.
13
He has a deep
spiders and refuses to stay in a room if he sees one.
Correct:
A fear (of) something = a strong feeling of being afraid of it.
14
The sudden bang outside gave me a terrible
and my heart started racing.
Correct:
A fright is a sudden strong feeling of fear.
15
The dictator ruled by
, using violence and threats to control people.
Correct:
Terror = extreme fear, often used about violence or political control.
16
On Sunday evening she felt a deep sense of
about going back to work on Monday.
Correct:
Dread = a strong feeling of fear or worry about something that will happen in the future.
17
As a child, she believed there was a
hiding under her bed, although it wasn’t real.
Correct:
A bogey / bogie is an imaginary monster used to frighten children.
18
Parents sometimes talk about the
to make their children behave and not do dangerous things.
Correct:
The bogeyman is an imaginary evil person who is said to punish children.
19
When the plane hit turbulence, he broke out in a
and his hands started shaking.
Correct:
A cold sweat = sweat on your body caused by fear or shock, not by heat.
20
I felt a sudden
run down my spine when I heard the strange noise.
Correct:
A chill = an unpleasant feeling like a cold wave in your body, often caused by fear.
21
That ghost story gave me
– I really didn’t want to walk through the dark corridor afterwards.
Correct:
The chills = a feeling of cold and fear at the same time.
22
A strong and often irrational fear of something specific, like spiders or flying, is called a
in psychology.
Correct:
A phobia = a strong, often irrational fear of a particular thing or situation.
23
Because of her
, she can’t travel in lifts or sit in very small rooms without feeling panic.
Correct:
Claustrophobia = a fear of being in small or closed spaces.
24
He has
, so even a small spider in the room makes him feel extremely anxious.
Correct:
Arachnophobia = a strong fear of spiders.
25
She didn’t want to walk across the high bridge because she has a
and feels dizzy when she looks down.
Correct:
A fear of heights = being afraid of being high above the ground.
26
At Halloween, they visited a
where actors dressed as ghosts and monsters to scare visitors.
Correct:
A haunted house = a house that is believed to have ghosts or spirits in it.
Fears & phobias
Match the sentences with the fears & phobia words
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