scary

scary — adjective

1. Something that is scary makes you feel afraid or worried that something bad migh

1.adjectiveA2
Definition

Something that is scary makes you feel afraid or worried that something bad might happen.

Example

The old house at the end of the street looked dark and scary at night.

predicative: be + scary

Rohan told his little sister a scary story about a monster under the bed.

attributive: scary + noun

Common collocations
  • scary movie
  • scary story
  • scary thought
  • scary moment
  • scary place
  • scary experience
  • a little scary
  • too scary
  • kind of scary
  • really scary
Synonyms
  • frightening

    The closest direct synonym; similar in strength and formality.

  • terrifying

    Stronger than scary; suggests extreme or overwhelming fear.

  • creepy

    Describes an unsettling, mysterious kind of fear, often connected to strange places or people.

  • spooky

    Informal; used especially for fears connected to ghosts, the dark, or the supernatural.

Antonyms
  • reassuring

    Makes you feel calm and safe rather than afraid.

  • calming

    Reduces worry and creates a peaceful feeling, opposite of causing fear.

Grammar Patterns

scary + noun

be + scary

Usage Note

Scary describes the thing that causes fear, not the person feeling it. Use scared for the person: 'I felt scared' (not 'I felt scary').

Common Mistakes

I am scary of spiders.
I am scared of spiders.
Scary describes the thing that causes fear; scared describes how a person feels.

Word family

Synonym discussion

Sense: adjective/1

Scary is the most general and common word for anything that causes fear, used in both serious and casual contexts. Frightening is very close in meaning but slightly more formal — you might find it in news reports or written descriptions. Terrifying is much stronger and suggests a level of fear that is hard to control, such as what a person feels during a serious accident. Creepy describes an uncomfortable, mysterious kind of fear, often connected to strange behaviour, empty buildings, or unnatural situations. Spooky is informal and lighter in tone, mainly used for the playful fear of ghosts, haunted houses, or Halloween. For example, a horror film might be both scary and terrifying, while an empty school at midnight feels creepy, and a ghost story told around a campfire is spooky.

frightening ↗terrifying ↗creepy ↗spooky ↗

Common collocations

Nouns

Adverbs

Phrases

  • scary as hell
  • scary stuff
  • scary thing about

Etymology

Old NorseEnglish

Scary comes from the verb scare (meaning 'to frighten'), which can be traced back to the Old Norse word skirra ('to frighten' or 'to shrink from fear'). The adjective form first appeared in English in the early 1800s.