alarm

Alternative forms

• alarum

Etymology

From Middle English alarme, alarom, borrowed from Middle French alarme, itself from Old Italian all'arme! (“to arms!, to the weapons!”), ultimately from Latin arma (“arms, weapons”).

Pronunciation

• (Received Pronunciation) IPA^(key): /əˈlɑːm/
• (General American) IPA^(key): /əˈlɑɹm/
• Hyphenation: alarm

• Audio (US)

  (file)

• Rhymes: -ɑː(ɹ)m

Noun

alarm (countable and uncountable, plural alarms)

1. A summons to arms, as on the approach of an enemy.

   Arming to answer in a night alarm. --Shakespeare.

2. Any sound or information intended to give notice of approaching danger; a warning sound to arouse attention; a warning of danger.

   Sound an alarm in my holy mountain. --Joel ii. 1.

   • 1859, Charles Dickens, The Haunted House

     She went about the house in a state of real terror, and yet lied monstrously and wilfully, and invented many of the alarms she spread, and made many of the sounds we heard.

3. A sudden attack; disturbance.
   • Shakespeare

     these home alarms

   • Alexander Pope

     thy palace fill with insults and alarms

4. Sudden surprise with fear or terror excited by apprehension of danger; in the military use, commonly, sudden apprehension of being attacked by surprise.

   Alarm and resentment spread throughout the camp. --Thomas Babington Macaulay.

5. A mechanical device for awaking people, or rousing their attention.

   The clockradio is a friendlier version of the cold alarm by the bedside

6. An instance of an alarm ringing, beeping or clanging, to give a noise signal at a certain time.

   You should set the alarm on your watch to go off at seven o'clock.

Verb

alarm (third-person singular simple present alarms, present participle alarming, simple past and past participle alarmed)

1. (transitive) To call to arms for defense
2. (transitive) To give (someone) notice of approaching danger
3. (transitive) To rouse to vigilance and action; to put on the alert.
4. (transitive) To surprise with apprehension of danger; to fill with anxiety in regard to threatening evil; to excite with sudden fear.
5. (transitive) To keep in excitement; to disturb.

References

• alarm in Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary, G. & C. Merriam, 1913

Anagrams

• Lamar, Marla, malar, marla, ramal

Etymology

Ultimately from Italian all' arme (to arms), allarme; cf. also French alarme.

Pronunciation

• Audio

  (file)

• Rhymes: -ɑrm

Noun

alarm n (plural alarmen, diminutive alarmpje n)

1. alarm

Anagrams

• Almar

Etymology

From Italian all' arme (to arms) and allarme, via French alarme

Noun

alarm m (definite singular alarmen, indefinite plural alarmer, definite plural alarmene)

1. an alarm

References

• “alarm” in The Bokmål Dictionary.

Etymology

From Italian all' arme (to arms) and allarme, via French alarme

Noun

alarm m (definite singular alarmen, indefinite plural alarmar, definite plural alarmane)

1. an alarm

References

• “alarm” in The Nynorsk Dictionary.

Etymology

From Italian all' arme! (to arms).^[1] Cf. French alarme.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈa.larm/

• audio

  (file)

Noun

alarm m inan

1. alarm
2. The state of being alerted

References

Further reading

• alarm in Polish dictionaries at PWN

Etymology

From French alarme.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ǎlarm/
• Hyphenation: a‧larm

Noun

àlarm m (Cyrillic spelling а̀ларм)

1. alarm

References

• “alarm” in Hrvatski jezični portal