as in frightened
filled with fear or dread
Ichabod Crane was so spooked that he left Sleepy Hollow for good
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
as in scared
to strike with fear
the sudden noise spooked her out of her skin
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
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Recent Examples of spooked
Brian Moylan,
Vulture,
10 June 2026
The Grammy Award-winning superstar took to Instagram to share her experience, which left her spooked and unable to sleep.
—
Chris Gardner,
HollywoodReporter,
10 Apr. 2026
Robert Frank,
CNBC,
3 July 2026
Any browns feeding there are less likely to have been spooked by the commotion.
—
Tom Opre,
Outdoor Life,
2 July 2026
However, Anthropic’s Mythos release spooked Trump into requesting voluntary safety testing of frontier models in May.
—
Ashley Belanger,
ArsTechnica,
1 July 2026
In the 2014 World Cup, in Brazil, Postecoglou’s Australia spooked a talented Chile in one match, and took the lead against the Netherlands in another.
—
Naaman Zhou,
New Yorker,
1 July 2026
Some market analysts pointed to worries sparked by Google (GOOG) and SpaceX (SPCX) falling somewhat sharply the previous day while others suggested that investors had been spooked by likely forthcoming rate hikes by the Federal Reserve.
—
Anna Cooban,
CNN Money,
25 June 2026
There were plenty of large homes on the North Fork, and more popping up every day, but the scale of the project had spooked many locals.
—
Reeves Wiedeman,
Curbed,
22 June 2026
Romanch Mahajan, who was visiting New York City from India with his family, suffered fatal injuries when the horse became spooked and bolted off.
—
Ronn Blitzer , Tessa Hoyos,
FOXNews.com,
22 June 2026
The horse then got spooked and ran off, while the driver chased after it.
—
Katie Houlis,
CBS News,
20 June 2026
Adjective
Know what would make Whitney less spooked?
—
Brian Moylan,
Vulture,
10 June 2026
The Grammy Award-winning superstar took to Instagram to share her experience, which left her spooked and unable to sleep.
—
Chris Gardner,
HollywoodReporter,
10 Apr. 2026
Verb
Brokers say that while some buyers were initially spooked by the tax, the flood of liquidity from recent initial public offerings and soaring wealth from asset prices has outweighed their fears.
—
Robert Frank,
CNBC,
3 July 2026
Any browns feeding there are less likely to have been spooked by the commotion.
—
Tom Opre,
Outdoor Life,
2 July 2026
However, Anthropic’s Mythos release spooked Trump into requesting voluntary safety testing of frontier models in May.
—
Ashley Belanger,
ArsTechnica,
1 July 2026
In the 2014 World Cup, in Brazil, Postecoglou’s Australia spooked a talented Chile in one match, and took the lead against the Netherlands in another.
—
Naaman Zhou,
New Yorker,
1 July 2026
Some market analysts pointed to worries sparked by Google (GOOG) and SpaceX (SPCX) falling somewhat sharply the previous day while others suggested that investors had been spooked by likely forthcoming rate hikes by the Federal Reserve.
—
Anna Cooban,
CNN Money,
25 June 2026
There were plenty of large homes on the North Fork, and more popping up every day, but the scale of the project had spooked many locals.
—
Reeves Wiedeman,
Curbed,
22 June 2026
Romanch Mahajan, who was visiting New York City from India with his family, suffered fatal injuries when the horse became spooked and bolted off.
—
Ronn Blitzer , Tessa Hoyos,
FOXNews.com,
22 June 2026
The horse then got spooked and ran off, while the driver chased after it.
—
Katie Houlis,
CBS News,
20 June 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for spooked
Adjective
-
In May, a frightened horse rammed into another carriage, causing the vehicle to flip over, injuring the driver.
-
Rodríguez acknowledged that many remain too frightened to return home even after inspections declared some buildings safe.
Verb
-
Don’t be scared by his blue eyes.
-
Lendeborg being 24 when camp opens rightly scared away some of the rebuilding teams picking ahead of Golden State, especially in concert with his iffy outside shot.
Adjective
-
Campbell found the minister on the ground, terrified and in pain.
-
Videos show terrified residents and collapsed buildings across Venezuela as powerful back-to-back earthquakes struck the northern coast of the country.
Verb
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Comcast startled the industry and Wall Street with the split news early Monday, which comes just a few months after NBCU’s cable networks were spun off into a new company, Versant Media.
-
Hyland said he’s been startled by how close the construction barges come to shore.
Adjective
-
The ruling leaves trans student-athletes and their advocates feeling angry and afraid.
-
Pregnant mothers are afraid of their babies not being able to have a home.
Adjective
-
The first police officer on the scene quickly ran back to the station for help, while neighbors calmed the horrified Lizzie.
-
As a horrified Sam inadvertently observes, a creature has been sating itself on his buddy’s brain.
Adjective
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Politico reported on Wednesday that even some key Republicans are alarmed at the supplemental, claiming the administration hadn't provided enough information.
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The talks unfold amid fresh crossfire over reopening the Strait of Hormuz, a vital oil chokepoint the closure of which has fueled a global energy crisis and alarmed allies.
Adjective
-
Pochettino says while making a shocked face.
-
Her mom was incredibly proud — and a bit shocked — that a Black man had been elected president.
Cite this Entry
“Spooked.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/spooked. Accessed 6 Jul. 2026.
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