alarm

See also: Alarm

English

Alternative forms

• alarum

Etymology

From Middle English alarme, alarom, borrowed from Middle French alarme, itself from Old Italian all'arme! (“to arms!, to the weapons!”), ultimately from Latin arma (“arms, weapons”).

Pronunciation

• (Received Pronunciation) IPA^(key): /əˈlɑːm/
• (General American) IPA^(key): /əˈlɑɹm/
• Hyphenation: alarm

• Audio (US)

  (file)

• Rhymes: -ɑː(ɹ)m

Noun

alarm (countable and uncountable, plural alarms)

1. A summons to arms, as on the approach of an enemy.

   Arming to answer in a night alarm. --Shakespeare.

2. Any sound or information intended to give notice of approaching danger; a warning sound to arouse attention; a warning of danger.

   Sound an alarm in my holy mountain. --Joel ii. 1.

   • 1859, Charles Dickens, The Haunted House

     She went about the house in a state of real terror, and yet lied monstrously and wilfully, and invented many of the alarms she spread, and made many of the sounds we heard.

3. A sudden attack; disturbance.
   • Shakespeare

     these home alarms

   • Alexander Pope

     thy palace fill with insults and alarms

4. Sudden surprise with fear or terror excited by apprehension of danger; in the military use, commonly, sudden apprehension of being attacked by surprise.

   Alarm and resentment spread throughout the camp. --Thomas Babington Macaulay.

5. A mechanical device for awaking people, or rousing their attention.

   The clockradio is a friendlier version of the cold alarm by the bedside

6. An instance of an alarm ringing, beeping or clanging, to give a noise signal at a certain time.

   You should set the alarm on your watch to go off at seven o'clock.

Derived terms

Derived terms

• alarm bell
• alarm clock
• alarm reaction

• false alarm
• fire alarm

• multialarm
• raise the alarm

Translations

summons to arms

• Arabic: إِنْذَار‎ m (ʾinḏār)
• Armenian: տագնապ (hy) (tagnap)
• Belarusian: трыво́га f (tryvóha)
• Bulgarian: трево́га (bg) f (trevóga)
• Catalan: alarma (ca) f
• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 警報 (zh), 警报 (zh) (jǐngbào)

• Dutch: alarmkreet (nl) n, oproep te wapen
• Finnish: hälytys (fi)
• French: alarme (fr) f
• Georgian: განგაში (gangaši)
• German: Alarm (de) m
• Hungarian: fegyverbe, riadó (hu)

• Italian: allarme (it) m
• Japanese: 警報 (ja) (けいほう, keihō)
• Korean: 경보 (ko) (gyeongbo) (警報 (ko))
• Polish: alarm (pl) m
• Portuguese: alarme (pt) m
• Russian: трево́га (ru) f (trevóga)
• Serbo-Croatian:

  Cyrillic: аларм m

  Roman: alarm (sh) m

• Spanish: alarma (es) m, rebato (es)
• Ukrainian: триво́га f (tryvóha)
• Uzbek: taxlika, vahima (uz)
• Vietnamese: sự báo động

notice of approaching danger

• Bulgarian: тревога (bg) (trevoga), аларма (bg) (alarma)
• Catalan: alarma (ca) f
• Dutch: alarm (nl) n, alarmsignaal (nl) n
• Finnish: hälytys (fi)
• Georgian: განგაში (gangaši)
• German: Alarm (de) m, Alarmsignal n
• Greek: συναγερμός (el) m (synagermós)
• Hungarian: riadó (hu)
• Italian: allarme (it) m

• Japanese: 注意 (ja) (chuui)
• Norwegian:

  Bokmål: alarm (no) m

  Nynorsk: alarm m

• Portuguese: alarme (pt) m
• Russian: трево́га (ru) f (trevóga)
• Scottish Gaelic: rabhadh m
• Spanish: alarma (es) m, rebato (es)
• Uzbek: taxlika

sudden surprise with fear or terror

• Catalan: alarma (ca) f
• Dutch: alarmstemming
• Finnish: pelästyminen (fi)
• Georgian: შიში (šiši), ღელვა (ɣelva), მღელვარება (mɣelvareba)
• German: Alarmstimmung f
• Greek:

  Ancient Greek: τάρβος n (tárbos)

• Hungarian: ijedtség (hu), riadalom (hu)
• Maori: ahaaha, kōruru
• Portuguese: alarme (pt) m
• Russian: испу́г (ru) m (ispúg), смяте́ние (ru) n (smjaténije), страх (ru) m (strax), опасе́ние (ru) n (opasénije)
• Scottish Gaelic: clisgeadh m

mechanical contrivance for awaking

• Armenian: զարթուցիչ (hy) (zartʿucʿičʿ)
• Bulgarian: буди́лник (bg) m (budílnik)
• Catalan: despertador m
• Dutch: alarm (nl) n, alarmklok (nl), wekker (nl) m
• Esperanto: alarmilo
• Finnish: herätyskello (fi)
• French: réveille-matin (fr) m, réveil (fr) m
• Georgian: მაღვიძარა (maɣviʒara)

• German: Wecker (de) m
• Greek: ξυπνητήρι (el) n (xypnitíri)
• Hungarian: ébresztő (hu)
• Japanese: 目覚まし時計 (ja) (めざましどけい, mezamashidokei)
• Portuguese: despertador (pt) m
• Russian: буди́льник (ru) m (budílʹnik), сигнализа́ция (ru) f (signalizácija) (alarm system)
• Spanish: despertador m
• Swedish: väckarklocka (sv) c

instance of an alarm ringing or clanging

• Armenian: ահազանգ (hy) (ahazang), տագնապի ազդանշան (tagnapi azdanšan)
• Bulgarian: обявяване на трево́га (objavjavane na trevóga)
• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 警報信號, 警报信号 (jǐngbào xìnhào)

• Esperanto: please add this translation if you can
• Finnish: hälytys (fi)

• Japanese: please add this translation if you can
• Russian: сигна́л трево́ги m (signál trevógi)
• Spanish: alarma (es) f
• Thai: please add this translation if you can
• Uzbek: vahima (uz)

The translations below need to be checked and inserted above into the appropriate translation tables, removing any numbers. Numbers do not necessarily match those in definitions. See instructions at Wiktionary:Entry layout#Translations.

Translations to be checked

• French: ^{(please verify)} alarme (fr)
• Georgian: ^{(please verify)} განგაში (gangaši)

• Irish: ^{(please verify)} aláram m, ^{(please verify)} creill f

See also

• tocsin

Verb

alarm (third-person singular simple present alarms, present participle alarming, simple past and past participle alarmed)

1. (transitive) To call to arms for defense
2. (transitive) To give (someone) notice of approaching danger
3. (transitive) To rouse to vigilance and action; to put on the alert.
4. (transitive) To surprise with apprehension of danger; to fill with anxiety in regard to threatening evil; to excite with sudden fear.
5. (transitive) To keep in excitement; to disturb.

Derived terms

• alarming

• alarmist

Translations

to call to arms

• Bulgarian: вдигам по тревога
• Catalan: alarmar (ca)

• Dutch: te wapen roepen
• Finnish: hälyttää (fi)

to give notice (by sound or otherwise) of approaching danger

• Bulgarian: обявявам тревога
• Catalan: alarmar (ca)
• Dutch: alarmeren (nl), alarm slaan
• Esperanto: alarmi
• Finnish: hälyttää (fi)

• German: Alarm schlagen (intransitive), alarmieren (transitive)
• Hungarian: riaszt (hu)
• Maori: tarakeha (given by birds), pāoho
• Portuguese: alarmar (pt)

to surprise with apprehension of danger

• Catalan: alarmar (ca)
• Dutch: alarmeren (nl), beangstigen (nl)
• Esperanto: alarmi
• Finnish: pelästyttää (fi), hätäännyttää

• German: alarmieren (de)
• Maori: whakahopo
• Portuguese: alarmar (pt)

to keep in excitement; to disturb

• Bulgarian: разтревожвам (bg) (raztrevožvam)
• Catalan: alarmar (ca)
• Dutch: alarmeren (nl), verontrusten (nl)

• Finnish: huolestuttaa (fi)
• German: in Alarmstimmung versetzen
• Thai: รบกวน (th) (róp-guuan)

The translations below need to be checked and inserted above into the appropriate translation tables, removing any numbers. Numbers do not necessarily match those in definitions. See instructions at Wiktionary:Entry layout#Translations.

Translations to be checked

• French: alarmer, donner/sonner l'alerte

• German: Alarm schlagen (intransitive), alarmieren

References

• alarm in Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary, G. & C. Merriam, 1913

Anagrams

• Lamar, Marla, malar, marla, ramal

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Dutch

Etymology

Ultimately from Italian all' arme (to arms), allarme; cf. also French alarme.

Pronunciation

• Audio

  (file)

• Rhymes: -ɑrm

Noun

alarm n (plural alarmen, diminutive alarmpje n)

1. alarm

Related terms

• alarmeren

Anagrams

• Almar

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Norwegian Bokmål

Etymology

From Italian all' arme (to arms) and allarme, via French alarme

Noun

alarm m (definite singular alarmen, indefinite plural alarmer, definite plural alarmene)

1. an alarm

Derived terms

• alarmklokke
• brannalarm

References

• “alarm” in The Bokmål Dictionary.

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Norwegian Nynorsk

Etymology

From Italian all' arme (to arms) and allarme, via French alarme

Noun

alarm m (definite singular alarmen, indefinite plural alarmar, definite plural alarmane)

1. an alarm

Derived terms

• alarmklokke
• brannalarm

References

• “alarm” in The Nynorsk Dictionary.

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Polish

Etymology

From Italian all' arme! (to arms). Cf. French alarme.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈa.larm/

• audio

  (file)

Noun

alarm m inan

1. alarm
2. The state of being alerted

Declension

declension of alarm

	singular	plural
nominative	alarm	alarmy
genitive	alarmu	alarmów
dative	alarmowi	alarmom
accusative	alarm	alarmy
instrumental	alarmem	alarmami
locative	alarmie	alarmach
vocative	alarmie	alarmy

Derived terms

• alarmowy
• alarmować

Further reading

• alarm in Polish dictionaries at PWN

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Serbo-Croatian

Etymology

From French alarme.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ǎlarm/
• Hyphenation: a‧larm

Noun

àlarm m (Cyrillic spelling а̀ларм)

1. alarm

Declension

Declension of alarm

	singular	plural
nominative	alarm	alarmi
genitive	alarma	alarma
dative	alarmu	alarmima
accusative	alarm	alarme
vocative	alarme	alarmi
locative	alarmu	alarmima
instrumental	alarmom	alarmima

Derived terms

• lažni alarm

References

• “alarm”, in Hrvatski jezični portal, 2006–2018