in a panic
19
4.3
- idiom
:
en pánico
- I was in a panic when I realized I had lost my wallet in the crowded market.
- ran in a panic
- woke in a panic
- called in a panic
Maybe they're in a panic, rushed this e-mail.
- Maybe they're in a panic, rushed this e-mail.
- Scarborough this morning is now in a panic.
- If you just stay on, do the best thing for the customer, then you, you don't find yourself in a panic.
- I woke up in a panic thinking I overslept, but I didn't and now I'm extremely exhausted.
- I, I, I, I go in a panic when I feel like my fate is in somebody else's hands.
- He called me one day in a panic, and he said I just had this traumatic event where I was riding a thing for work.
- I had three children by then, and they were asleep upstairs, and suddenly I was flat on my back in a panic on the living room floor.
- Yeah, it's mad, but you don't need that to exit the line for security in a panic because you just look hot.
- And especially with young people, pot's the kind of thing that one hit can land you in a panic attack.
Examples
-
I ran home, in a panic, past the spot where Joyce met Nora.
Academic text (2004) -
Beverly's in a panic because a hair appointment ran over.
-
When they found me, everyone was in a panic.
-
Everybody up at town hall is in a panic.
-
I want just a few minutes where we're not in a panic.
-
I was in a panic.
-
l was in a panic all day thinking and thinking about it.
-
Sometimes in the middle of the night, he would wake up in a panic.
Fiction book (1996) -
Not home an hour, and already he felt in a panic.
Fiction book (1999) -
On the bus home, she was in a panic.
Academic text (2008)
Synonyms
263
2.1
Feeling very afraid because you think something bad will happen
93
3.9
Very worried and acting quickly in a wild, uncontrolled way
29
4.6
So frightened that you cannot move or think clearly
22
4.1
Feeling sudden, strong fear that makes you act without thinking
16
4.6
Feeling sudden, strong fear that makes it hard to think or act calmly
10
2.2
Suddenly afraid or worried because you think something bad might happen
4
6.3
Suddenly very afraid and acting without thinking
1
2.6
Shaking slightly because you feel afraid, cold, or weak
1
7.7
Suddenly feeling very frightened
1
7.2
Feeling very shocked and afraid after seeing something frightening
Suddenly very afraid and unable to think clearly
Suddenly feeling very afraid
Antonyms
How Anxious
Surface Forms
Morphology
The meaning 'experiencing sudden or intense anxiety' is directly and transparently derived from the constituents: 'in' marks a state or condition, 'a' is the indefinite article, and 'panic' names the state. This prepositional-state pattern (e.g. 'in trouble', 'in fear') is cross-linguistically common and follows standard English composition, so a B1 learner who knows the words will readily understand it.
Etymology
In a panic comes from an old Greek story about the god Pan, who could suddenly frighten people with a loud cry or noise. That's why being in a panic means feeling a 'sudden, strong fear' that can make you act quickly or without thinking.