William Shakespeare
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Today we usually think of an alarm as a loud noise that awakens us or warns us of danger. Its first use, however, was in Italy as a call to arms to soldiers. The Italian phrase all’arme! means literally “to arms” or “to your weapons.” The call was borrowed into other languages and came to be shortened to alarme in early French and Middle English. The word also came to be used as the name for the cry, then for any warning, and then to any device used to sound a warning, such as a bell or a gun. Since an alarm can cause fright or worry, such feelings also came to be known as alarm. By the 17th century, the word was used as a verb, meaning “to warn of danger” and then “to frighten.”
Synonyms
Examples of alarm in a Sentence
Jonathan Shorman, Kansas City Star, 3 Apr. 2024
The fire district was alerted to an alarm by a fire and security company.
—Jake Allen, The Indianapolis Star, 2 Apr. 2024
Tuesday’s lackluster deliveries report (an approximate gauge for sales) comes after even some of the most optimistic analysts have recently sounded the alarm on Tesla’s performance.
—Marco Quiroz-Gutierrez, Fortune, 2 Apr. 2024
China’s activity has already raised alarms inside the American government.
—Steven Lee Myers, New York Times, 1 Apr. 2024
Those in the path of totality should keep an eye on the time — perhaps using a timer or alarm — to know when to put their eclipse glasses back on.
—Rong-Gong Lin Ii, Los Angeles Times, 1 Apr. 2024
Personal alarm This personal alarm emits a loud attention grabbing sound with one simple pull.
—ABC News, 29 Mar. 2024
Any policy relying on less debate and greater ignorance should raise alarms in a democracy.
—Phil Klay, The Atlantic, 28 Mar. 2024
Police and other emergency officials would also walk the streets with loudspeakers to announce any alarms, officials said.
—Siobhán O'Grady, Washington Post, 22 Mar. 2024
Lucas Shaw, Fortune Europe, 3 Apr. 2024
For over two decades, China’s phenomenal economic performance impressed and alarmed much of the world, including the United States, its top trading partner.
—Nicholas R. Lardy, Foreign Affairs, 2 Apr. 2024
Since 2007, the first census after alarming bee die-offs began in 2006, the honeybee has been the fastest-growing livestock segment in the country!
—Andrew Van Dam, Washington Post, 29 Mar. 2024
Pettitt has watched the rise of the younger trad wives with fascination, then alarm.
—Sophie Elmhirst, The New Yorker, 29 Mar. 2024
Temperatures began rising and radiation monitors alarmed, but no radiation leaked from the containment building into the environment.
—Kylie Martin, Detroit Free Press, 28 Mar. 2024
Alarmed but not wanting to alarm the rest of the class, the teacher, Ilana Cohn, quietly asked her paraprofessional to take the small child with the soft brown eyes to the health office.
—Deborah Sontag, New York Times, 25 Mar. 2024
His neighbors in the Berkshires are alarmed by a series of stories that have run in local publications, and the town’s select board forces Chambers to close the Berkshire People’s Gym.
—David Peisner, Rolling Stone, 24 Mar. 2024
Record ocean temperatures Scientists continue to be astonished and alarmed by warmer temperatures across the world’s oceans between the 60 degree latitude lines.
—USA TODAY, 23 Mar. 2024
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'alarm.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Word History
Noun
Middle English alarme, alarom, from Middle French alarme, from Old Italian all'arme, literally, to the arms
Noun
15th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1
Verb
1586, in the meaning defined at sense 1
Phrases Containing alarm
Dictionary Entries Near alarm
Cite this Entry
“Alarm.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/alarm. Accessed 17 Apr. 2024.
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Kids Definition
alarm
1 of 2 nounalarm
2 of 2 verbNoun
Middle English alarme "a call to arms," from early French alarme (same meaning), derived from early Italian all'arme, literally "to arms," from all' "to the" and arme "weapon," from Latin arma "weapon" — related to arm entry 3
More from Merriam-Webster on alarm
Nglish: Translation of alarm for Spanish Speakers
Britannica English: Translation of alarm for Arabic Speakers
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