as in frightened
too overcome with panic to think or act normally
The panic-stricken horses crashed through the door of the burning barn.
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Recent Examples of panic-stricken
For the first time in his life, the great shark couldn’t swim freely and, panic-stricken, bolted clear of his world and there was only emptiness, and his tail and pectoral fins were helpless in the void.
—
Pat Smith, Outdoor Life, 24 July 2025
That afternoon, another detainee called her with a message that left her panic-stricken: Her son, 25-year-old Yoiker David Sequera, had been taken away to a notorious offshore prison.
—Lauren Villagran, USA TODAY, 13 Feb. 2025
These are not the first crew members to be panic-stricken by a stray rat today.
—Dalton Ross, EW.com, 12 May 2023
Pat Smith, Outdoor Life, 24 July 2025
That afternoon, another detainee called her with a message that left her panic-stricken: Her son, 25-year-old Yoiker David Sequera, had been taken away to a notorious offshore prison.
—Lauren Villagran, USA TODAY, 13 Feb. 2025
These are not the first crew members to be panic-stricken by a stray rat today.
—Dalton Ross, EW.com, 12 May 2023
Recent Examples of Synonyms for panic-stricken
Adjective
-
While protesters may be frightened and grieving after last month's bloodbath, they're not mollified.—
Arkansas Online,
Arkansas Online,
10 Feb. 2026
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Inside the bathysphere of the novel, readers make contact with a darkness that our frightened minds might otherwise reject.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
10 Feb. 2026
Adjective
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Many people come to the story—the missing woman, the panicked family, the ordeal so singular but relatable—expressing compassion.—
Megan Garber,
The Atlantic,
11 Feb. 2026
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Cherry and his group then bolted from the scene, fleeing north on State Street to Lake Street, and then east on Lake Street to Wabash Avenue, as dozens of panicked people began running for their lives, prosecutors said.—
Adam Harrington,
CBS News,
5 Feb. 2026
Adjective
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In one of those realities (the actual one most of us are living in), a growing number of people across the political spectrum are angered, terrified and disgusted by actions being taken in their names by people and agencies which seem to have little or no accountability.—
Brenda Looper,
Arkansas Online,
11 Feb. 2026
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The bodycam video was an eye-opening look at the frightening aftermath of the Brown campus shooting when police were searching room-by-room for the suspect, trying to comfort and care for terrified students, and trying to coordinate with campus police to get past locked doors.—
Corky Siemaszko,
NBC news,
9 Feb. 2026
Adjective
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Number two, everyone is scared.—
Dalton Ross,
Entertainment Weekly,
9 Feb. 2026
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Individuals, nonprofits and local businesses collect bags of food, baby formula, diapers and other items and deliver them to people too scared to leave their homes.—
Ray Sanchez,
CNN Money,
8 Feb. 2026
Adjective
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Cuomo and his panicky allies need the pollsters to be wrong again; maybe with a surge of older voters, maybe if Republican Curtis Sliwa’s supporters desert him.—
David Weigel,
semafor.com,
3 Nov. 2025
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As top-tier sports continue to flee pay-TV like so many panicky horses hoofing their way out of a burning stable, the WNBA is nosing around for oats among the haybales as the sparks fly skyward.—
Anthony Crupi,
Sportico.com,
3 Oct. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Panic-stricken.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/panic-stricken. Accessed 15 Feb. 2026.
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