alarm

Universal Words noun, verb noun 1 [U] fear and anxiety that sb feels when sth dangerous or unpleasant might happen: 'What have you done?' Ellie cried in alarm. * I felt a growing sense of alarm when he did not return that night. * The doctor said there was no cause for alarm. 2 [C,usually sing.] a loud noise or a signal that warns people of danger or of a problem: She decided to sound the alarm (= warn people that the situation was dangerous). * I hammered on all the doors to raise the alarm. * By the time the alarm was raised the intruders had escaped. seealsoFALSEALARM 3 [C] a device that warns people of a particular danger: a burglar / fire / smoke alarm * The cat set off the alarm (= made it start ringing). * A car alarm went off in the middle of the night (= started ringing). 4 = ALARMCLOCK: The alarm went off at 7 o'clock. IDIOMS alarm bells ring / start ringing if you say that alarm bells are ringing, you mean that people are starting to feel worried and suspicious: The government's proposal has set alarm bells ringing for people on low incomes. verb 1 to make sb anxious or afraid: [VN] The captain knew there was an engine fault but didn't want to alarm the passengers. [also VNtoinf] 2 [VN] to fit sth such as a door with a device that warns people when sb is trying to enter illegally