Petrify

Pronunciation

• US IPA: /ˈpÉ›.tɹəˌfaɪ/

Origin

From Medieval Latin petrificare, from petra ("rock").

Verb

1. To harden organic matter by permeating with water and depositing dissolved minerals.
• unknown date Kirwana river that petrifies any sort of wood or leaves
2. To produce rigidity akin to stone.
3. To immobilize with fright.
4. (intransitive) To become stone, or of a stony hardness, as organic matter by calcareous deposits.
5. (intransitive, figurative) To become stony, callous, or obdurate.
• unknown date DrydenLike Niobe we marble grow,
  And petrify with grief.
6. (transitive, figurative) To make callous or obdurate; to stupefy; to paralyze; to transform; as by petrification.
• unknown date Alexander Popepetrify a genius to a dunce
• unknown date George EliotA hideous fatalism, which ought, logically, to petrify your volition.

Synonyms

Related terms

• petrifaction