Search

a sudden fear or distressing suspense caused by an awareness of danger; apprehension; fright.
any sound, outcry, or information intended to warn of approaching danger:
Paul Revere raced through the countryside raising the alarm that the British were coming.
an automatic device that serves to call attention, to rouse from sleep, or to warn of fire, smoke, an intruder, etc.
a warning sound; signal for attention.
Animal Behavior. any sound, outcry, chemical discharge, action, or other signal that functions to draw attention to a potential predator.
Fencing. an appeal or a challenge made by a step or stamp on the ground with the advancing foot.
Archaic. a call to arms.
to make fearful or apprehensive; distress.
to warn of danger; rouse to vigilance and swift measures for safety.
to fit or equip with an alarm or alarms, as for fire, smoke, or robbery:
to alarm one’s house and garage.
Contemporary Examples

With Athens recently alarmed by a half-dozen cases of West Nile virus, the attempt at humor went mostly unappreciated.
The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly of Being Politically Correct Michael Medved July 30, 2012

“We should not be surprised by or alarmed at the fact that the Loya Jirga is going to examine this agreement,” he said.
Gen. John Allen Praises the Terms of New U.S.-Afghanistan Agreement Daniel Klaidman November 20, 2013

alarmed by the crying, my husband came down from his office.
A Mother-Son Book Bake-Off Hyatt Bass June 24, 2009

Still, friends of the crew were alarmed that they possibly took their delinquency to such bizarre extremes.
The Kids Who Robbed Hollywood Nicole LaPorte October 25, 2009

But the Anti-Defamation League, which no one can accuse of ignoring anti-Semitism, has been less than alarmed.
The Right’s Failed Protest Smear Michelle Goldberg October 25, 2011

Historical Examples

“The captain and Mr Briscoe think there is nothing to be alarmed about,” was the reply.
Old Gold George Manville Fenn

But Proserpina was so alarmed, that she wished for nothing but to get out of his reach.
Tanglewood Tales Nathaniel Hawthorne

But young Ibsen was not a favorite even with the girls, whom he alarmed and disconcerted.
Henrik Ibsen Edmund Gosse

I will not—Heaven forbid that I should alarm you as I have been alarmed!
Tales And Novels, Volume 5 (of 10) Maria Edgeworth

His servant was alarmed by startling screams, entered his room, and found his master in fearful convulsions.
A Love Story A Bushman

verb (transitive)
to fill with apprehension, anxiety, or fear
to warn about danger; alert
to fit or activate a burglar alarm on a house, car, etc
noun
fear or terror aroused by awareness of danger; fright
apprehension or uneasiness: the idea of failing filled him with alarm
a noise, signal, etc, warning of danger
any device that transmits such a warning: a burglar alarm

the device in an alarm clock that triggers off the bell or buzzer
short for alarm clock

(archaic) a call to arms
(fencing) a warning or challenge made by stamping the front foot
adj.

“disturbed by prospects of peril,” 1640s, past participle adjective from alarm (v.).
n.

early 14c., from Old French alarme (14c.), from Italian all’arme “to arms!” (literally “to the arms”). An interjection that came to be used as the word for the call or warning (cf. alert). Extended 16c. to “any sound to warn of danger or to arouse.” Weakened sense of “apprehension, unease” is from 1833. Variant alarum is due to the rolling -r- in the vocalized form. Sometimes in early years anglicized as all-arm. Alarm clock is attested from 1690s (as A Larum clock).
v.

1580s, from alarm (n.). Related: Alarmed; alarming.
air-launched antiradiation missile

a particular quivering sound of the silver trumpets to give warning to the Hebrews on their journey through the wilderness (Num. 10:5, 6), a call to arms, or a war-note (Jer. 4:19; 49:2; Zeph. 1:16).

see: false alarm