effrayé
/e.fʁɛ.je/
The English word "scared" is effrayé in French.
effrayé is an adjective used to describe someone who is frightened. It often implies a reaction to a specific sudden event or stimulus. While effrayé describes the state of being scared, the more common way to express the general feeling of being afraid in everyday French is the idiom avoir peur.
Meaning: afraid, frightened (adj)
Which one should you use?
While effrayé describes the specific state of being scared, avoir peur is the standard idiom used more generally for any type of fear.
How does it change in a sentence?
As an adjective, effrayé must agree in gender and number with the person who is scared. You add an -e to form the feminine effrayée, an -s to form the masculine plural effrayés and -es to form the feminine plural effrayées.
How do you pronounce it?
/e.fʁɛ.je/
Did you know?
- In informal French, people often use the word flippé to say they are scared. This slang term comes from the English word 'flip', as in 'flipping out'.
- In very formal or literary French, you might encounter the word épouvanté. This is a stronger version of effrayé and is related to épouvantail, the French word for a scarecrow.
- The French have a specific word, trac, to describe the particular kind of fear or stage fright felt before a performance. You do not use effrayé for this, but say avoir le trac.
Examples in context
- Il nous a effrayés.He scared us.This sentence shows how to use effrayé when describing someone who was scared by another person.Tatoeba #12052442 by Amastan, translation #2865349 by Amastan
- Le chat m'a effrayé.The cat scared me.This sentence shows how to use effrayé when describing a reaction to a cat.Tatoeba #1638525 by sacredceltic, translation #1638144 by Spamster
- Tom a l'air effrayé.Tom looks scared.This sentence shows how to use effrayé to describe how someone looks.Tatoeba #9253184 by Micsmithel, translation #1841449 by CK
- J'ai peur des araignéesI am scared of spiders
- Je suis effrayé(e) par les films d'horreurI am scared of horror movies
- Je crains les oragesI am scared of thunderstorms
- Je flippe devant les films d'épouvanteI get scared watching horror movies
- J'ai les jetons quand il y a des insectesI get scared when there are insects around
- As-tu peur des serpents?Are you scared of snakes?
- Oui, j'ai peur des serpents depuis mon enfance.Yes, I have been scared of snakes since my childhood.
- Pourquoi tu flippes autant pendant les films d'horreur?Why do you get so scared during horror movies?
- Ça me fait toujours flipper, même si je sais que ce ne sont que des effets spéciaux.It always scares me, even though I know it's only special effects.
- 90 more sentences on Tatoeba
Example conversation
Nathan and Emma are watching a horror movie.
- NathanTu as vu ce monstre ? Je suis effrayé !Did you see that monster? I am scared!
- EmmaNe sois pas effrayé, Nathan, ce n'est qu'un film.Don't be scared, Nathan, it is only a movie.
- NathanJe n'aime pas quand c'est aussi sombre.I don't like it when it's this dark.
- EmmaJe vais allumer la lumière pour toi.I will turn on the light for you.
Sources
- Pronunciation: Wiktionary entry effrayé, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
