panic attack
70
4.3
- noun
- /ˈpænɪk əˈtæk/
:
ataque de pánico
- During the presentation, she suddenly experienced a panic attack, making it hard for her to breathe.
- experience a panic attack
- first panic attack
- anxiety and panic attacks
Often folks don't realize that panic attacks are fairly short in nature.
- Often folks don't realize that panic attacks are fairly short in nature.
- And out of the blue they're having panic attacks or anxiety symptoms.
- I've had like panic attacks because of so many changes.
- There's an asthmatic with panic attacks that is breathing very dysfunctionally.
- And when most people have a panic attack, it's a one and done kind of thing.
- And then I would start getting panic attacks.
- And Ed, I had a panic attack.
- And this was more than just this panic attack in the restaurant.
- Like panic attacks, pacing up and down the cell.
- Does he drop out of college with panic attacks and live on his mom's couch?
- They had panic attacks, anxiety, fears.
Examples
-
Currently, she is no longer having panic attacks and is assisting others in learning positive self-talk.
Academic text (2013) -
I'm gonna be having that panic attack all day.
-
And when most people have a panic attack, it's a one and done kind of thing.
-
I was having panic attacks.
-
The frequency of the student's panic attacks was reduced.
Academic text (2013) -
When I was a sophomore in college, I started having panic attacks and intense anxiety.
Blog text (4) -
Often folks don't realize that panic attacks are fairly short in nature.
-
I've already had one panic attack, and I'm trying to hold off another one.
Fiction book (1990) -
He often avoids crowded places because he fears he might have a panic attack there.
-
After the movie, he realized that he had a panic attack due to the intense scenes.
Synonyms
559
4.1
A sudden time when bad symptoms appear
394
2.7
A sudden strong feeling of fear that makes you lose control
18
4.3
A sudden time of very strong fear with a fast heart and shaking
Antonyms
How Afraid
Surface Forms
Morphology
The meaning is directly and transparently derived from combining 'panic' (sudden overwhelming fear) with 'attack' (a sudden bout or seizure of symptoms), so a 'panic attack' literally denotes a sudden episode of intense fear often with physical symptoms. This noun+noun composition is cross-linguistically common (e.g. Spanish 'ataque de pánico') and follows standard English compounding, so a B1 learner who knows both constituents would readily infer the meaning.
Etymology
Panic attack comes from the word panic, once linked in stories to the god Pan who could cause sudden fear, and attack, which means a quick, strong start. So the phrase gives the image of a sudden, overwhelming wave of fear and physical symptoms, which is why it means 'a short period of intense fear or anxiety'.