# freak out

Pronunciation: say "freek-OWT" US /ˌfɹik ˈaʊt/, UK /ˌfɹiːk ˈaʊt/; AUS

## Phrasal verb

1. To react with extreme fear or anger, losing one's composure or behaving irrationally. *(colloquial)*
   - Simple: To get so scared or angry that you lose control and stop thinking clearly.
   - _When the fire alarm went off mid-flight, a few passengers freaked out and started shouting._
   - _Don't freak out. The dent in the car can be fixed._
2. To frighten or unsettle someone. *(colloquial)*
   - Simple: To make someone feel scared or uneasy.
   - _The silent stranger at the window was enough to freak out the night staff._
   - _Some guests were a little freaked out by the host's taxidermy collection._
3. To feel upset or nervous, or to be scared or unsettled. *(colloquial)*
   - Simple: To feel upset, nervous, or scared.
   - _She was quietly freaking out about the interview but managed to look calm._
   - _Plenty of first-time parents freak out a bit when the baby won't stop crying._
5. To take on an unconventional look or persona, especially one associated with the counterculture. *(colloquial)*
   - Simple: To change your look or style to something very unusual, often against what society expects.
   - _By the late sixties even clean-cut pop groups had begun to freak out, trading matching suits for beads and velvet._
   - _He freaked out for a summer, wearing a kaftan and calling himself Moonbeam._

## Noun · freak-out

Pronunciation: say "FREEK-owt" US /ˈfɹik aʊt/, UK /ˈfɹiːk aʊt/

4. A sudden episode of losing one's composure through extreme fear, anger, or upset.
   - Simple: A time when someone suddenly gets very scared, upset, or angry and loses control.
   - _The long delay set off a mass freak-out at the gate._
   - _His freak-out over a parking ticket became a running joke in the office._

## Noun

Pronunciation: say "FREEK-owt" US /ˈfɹik aʊt/, UK /ˈfɹiːk aʊt/

6. A bad or unpleasant experience while under the influence of LSD or another psychedelic drug. *(dated)*
   - Simple: A bad experience someone has after taking LSD or a similar drug.
   - _Friends talked him down from a freak out after the acid kicked in at the festival._
   - _Volunteers at the free clinic spent long nights calming kids through acid freak outs._

## Origin

From freak + out. Countercultural slang that originally referred to a positive reaction or experience from taking a psychotropic drug, usually a hallucinogen or psychedelic. It first appears around 1966 in several newspapers, particularly the Independent of Long Beach, California.

Source: DictionaryAI, https://dictionaryai.com/define/freak-out (written from Wiktionary data, CC BY-SA 4.0: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/).