- a sudden overwhelming feeling of terror or anxiety, esp one affecting a whole group of people
- (modifier) of or resulting from such terror: panic measures
- to feel or cause to feel panic
WordReference Random House Learner's Dictionary of American English © 2026
pan•ic1 /ˈpænɪk/USA pronunciation
n., adj., v., -icked, -ick•ing.
n.
adj. [before a noun]
v.
WordReference Random House Unabridged Dictionary of American English © 2026n.
- Psychiatry a sudden, great fear:[uncountable]Panic seized the demonstrators when the police attacked.
- Psychiatry an instance, outbreak, or period of such fear:[countable]A sudden panic seized him.
- Business[countable] a sudden widespread fear that the economy is in trouble, causing stock values to fall and some banks to fail.
- Slang Terms[Informal.]someone or something considered very funny:[countable;usually singular;usually: a + ~]That new show is a panic; we were gasping from laughing so hard.
adj. [before a noun]
- of, relating to, or caused by panic:panic selling of stocks.
v.
- to (cause to) have a feeling of panic: [no object]He panicked at the thought of asking her for a date.[~ + object]Something must have panicked the burglars, because they dropped the loot and ran.
pan•ic1
(pan′ik),USA pronunciation n., adj., v., -icked, -ick•ing.
n.
adj.
v.t.
v.i.
pan′ick•y, adj.
pan•ic2 (pan′ik),USA pronunciation n.
n.
- Psychiatrya sudden overwhelming fear, with or without cause, that produces hysterical or irrational behavior, and that often spreads quickly through a group of persons or animals.
- Psychiatryan instance, outbreak, or period of such fear.
- Business[Finance.]a sudden widespread fear concerning financial affairs leading to credit contraction and widespread sale of securities at depressed prices in an effort to acquire cash.
- Slang Termssomeone or something that is considered hilariously funny:The comedian was an absolute panic.
adj.
- of the nature of, caused by, or indicating panic:A wave of panic buying shook the stock market.
- (of fear, terror, etc.) suddenly destroying the self-control and impelling to some frantic action.
- (cap.) of or pertaining to the god Pan.
v.t.
- to affect with panic;
terrify and cause to flee or lose self-control. - Slang Termsto keep (an audience or the like) highly amused.
v.i.
- to be stricken with panic;
become frantic with fear:The herd panicked and stampeded.
- Greek Panikós of Pan; see -ic
- French
- earlier panique 1595–1605
- 1. alarm. See terror.
pan•ic2 (pan′ik),USA pronunciation n.
- Plant BiologyAlso called pan′ic grass′. any grass of the genus Panicum, many species of which bear edible grain.
- Plant Biologythe grain.
- Latin pānicum a kind of millet
- late Middle English 1375–1425
Collins Concise English Dictionary © HarperCollins Publishers::
panic /ˈpænɪk/ n
Collins Concise English Dictionary © HarperCollins Publishers::
Panic /ˈpænɪk/ adj
- of or relating to the god Pan
'panic' also found in these entries (note: many are not synonyms or translations):
anxiety disorder
- bundle
- circuit breaker
- flap
- Foster
- midlife crisis
- Pan
- panic attack
- panic button
- panic disorder
- panic room
- panic-stricken
- panic grass
- stage fright
- tailspin
- terror
- throw
- agoraphobic
- alarm
- ascribe
- blockbusting
- blow
- bug
- clutch
- composure
- consternation
- crazy
- desensitization
- dismay
- equanimity
- fear
- panic bar
- paniculate
- -phobe
- planet-struck
- white-knuckle
- witch grass
- scramble
- seize
- sensory deprivation
- skrik