TERROR Ter"ror, n. Etym: [L. terror, akin to terrere to frighten, for tersere; akin to Gr. tras to tremble, to be afraid, Russ. triasti to shake: cf. F. terreur. Cf. Deter.]
1. Extreme fear; fear that agitates body and mind; violent dread; fright. Terror seized the rebel host. Milton.
2. That which excites dread; a cause of extreme fear.
Those enormous terrors of the Nile. Prior.
Rulers are not a terror to good works. Rom. xiii. 3.
There is no terror, Cassius, in your threats. Shak.
Note: Terror is used in the formation of compounds which are generally self-explaining: as, terror-fraught, terror-giving, terror- smitten, terror-stricken, terror-struck, and the like. King of terrors, death. Job xviii. 14. — Reign of Terror. (F. Hist.) See in Dictionary of Noted Names in Fiction.
Syn.
— Alarm; fright; consternation; dread; dismay. See Alarm.
TERRORISM
Ter"ror*ism, n. Etym: [Cf. F. terrorisme.]
Defn: The act of terrorizing, or state of being terrorized; a mode of government by terror or intimidation. Jefferson.
Defn: The practise of coercing governments to accede to political demands by committing violence on civilian targets; any similar use of violence to achieve goals.
TERRORIST
Ter"ror*ist, n. Etym: [F. terroriste.]
Defn: One who governs by terrorism or intimidation; specifically, an agent or partisan of the revolutionary tribunal during the Reign of Terror in France. Burke.