Petrifies

Part of speech: verb

Definitions

1. Changes organic matter into a stone-like substance by mineral replacement over time ; causes someone to become extremely scared or frozen with fear
2. Transforms materials such as wood into a fossilized stony form through mineral deposition ; induces a strong feeling of terror that immobilizes a person
3. Converts once-living matter into hard mineral deposits preserving its structure ; causes intense dread or fear that stops action or movement

Etymology: "Petrifies" is the third-person singular form of "petrify," so the story belongs to the verb itself. Its core is a literal transformation: to petrify something was to turn it into stone. The root is the Greek "pétra," meaning rock, which passed through Latin "petra" and the Medieval Latin "petrificāre" before reaching French as "pétrifier." The second element, "-ficāre," comes from the Latin "facere," meaning to make or do, so the verb literally means "to make into rock." The shift to "fills with dread" is a figurative extension. Once people had the sense of being turned to stone, that image could describe being frozen in place by terror, as if the body had hardened. A person who is petrified with fear is stopped cold, unable to move, which is the same stillness a statue would have. The sense of the word moved from the material change to the emotional one while keeping the image of immobility.

Synonyms: terrifies, frightens, scares

Antonyms: comforts, reassures