petrify
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petrify
- /ˈpɛ.tɹəˌfaɪ/ US
Where it comes from
From Middle French pétrifier, from Medieval Latin petrificāre, from Latin petra (“rock”), from Ancient Greek πέτρα (pétra, “rock”) + -ficāre, from facere (“do, make”), equivalent to petro- + -ify.
verb petrifies · petrifying · petrified
- To turn to stone: to harden organic matter by permeating with water and depositing dissolved minerals. a river that petrifies any sort of wood or leaves
- To produce rigidity akin to stone.
-
To immobilize with fright.
Similar: alarm, affright, appall, dismay, fray, frighten, grill, give someone the shits, harrow, horrify, make someone's blood run cold, mortify
- To become stone, or of a stony hardness, as organic matter by calcareous deposits.
- To become stony, callous, or obdurate. Like Niobe we marble grow, / And petrify with grief.
- To make callous or obdurate; to stupefy; to paralyze; to transform; as by petrification. petrify a genius to a dunce
Translations
Every language
verb to harden organic matter
| Español | petrificar |
|---|---|
| 日本語 | 石化する sekika suru |
| Português | petrificar |
| Français | pétrifier |
| Deutsch | versteinern |
| Italiano | pietrificare |
| Ελληνικά | απολιθώνω apolithóno |
| Română | petrifica |
| Русский | превраща́ть в ка́мень prevraščátʹ v kámenʹ |
verb to produce rigidity akin to stone
| हिन्दी | पथराना pathrānā |
|---|---|
| Português | petrificar |
| Français | pétrifier |
| Deutsch | versteinern |
| Ελληνικά | απολιθώνω apolithóno |
| Română | petrifica |
verb to immobilize with fright
| Español | petrificar |
|---|---|
| Português | petrificar |
| Français | pétrifier |
| Deutsch | erstarren |
| Română | petrifica, împietri |
verb to become stone, or of a stony hardness
| 中文 | 石化 shíhuà |
|---|---|
| हिन्दी | पथराना pathrānā |
| Русский | камене́ть kamenétʹ, окамене́ть okamenétʹ |
verb to become stony, callous, or obdurate
| Русский | камене́ть kamenétʹ, окамене́ть okamenétʹ |
|---|
verb to make callous or obdurate; to transform as by petrification
| 中文 | 使发呆 |
|---|
Talk about this word "petrify." Wiktionary, via Micwyn, micwyn.com/word/petrify. Accessed 6 Nov. 2026. petrify. (n.d.). In Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Retrieved November 6, 2026, from https://micwyn.com/word/petrify "petrify." Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Accessed November 6, 2026. https://micwyn.com/word/petrify.Cite this
@misc{petrify_2026,
title = {petrify},
howpublished = {Wiktionary, via Micwyn},
year = {2026},
url = {https://micwyn.com/word/petrify},
urldate = {2026-11-06}
}
