alarm

See also: Alarm

English

Alternative forms

• alarum

Etymology

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

Pronunciation

• (UK) IPA^(key): /əˈlɑːm/
• (US) IPA^(key): /əˈlɑɹm/

• Audio (US)

  (file)

• Rhymes: -ɑː(r)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.

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 alarum ringing 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.

Related terms

• alarm bell
• alarm clock
• alarm reaction
• fire alarm
• raise the alarm

Translations

summons to arms

• Arabic: إنذار m (ʾinḏār)
• Belarusian: трывога f (tryvóha)
• Bulgarian: тревога (bg) f (trevóga)
• Catalan: alarma (ca) f
• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 警報 (zh), 警报 (jǐngbào)

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

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

  Cyrillic: аларм m

  Roman: alarm m

• Spanish: alarma (es) m
• Ukrainian: тривога f (tryvóha)
• Vietnamese: sự báo động (vi)

notice of approaching danger

• Bulgarian: тревога (bg) (trevoga), аларма (bg) (alarma)
• Catalan: alarma (ca) f
• Dutch: alarm (nl) n, alarmsignaal (nl) n
• Finnish: hälytys
• German: Alarm (de) m, Alarmsignal n

• Hungarian: riadó (hu)
• Portuguese: alarme (pt) m
• Russian: тревога (ru) f (trevóga)
• Scottish Gaelic: rabhadh m

sudden surprise with fear or terror

• Catalan: alarma (ca) f
• Dutch: alarmstemming
• Finnish: pelästyminen
• German: Alarmstimmung f
• Hungarian: ijedtség (hu), riadalom

• Portuguese: alarme (pt) m
• Russian: испуг (ru) m (ispúg), смятение (ru) n (smjaténije), страх (ru) m (strax), опасение (ru) n (opasénije)
• Scottish Gaelic: clisgeadh m

mechanical contrivance for awaking

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

• German: Wecker (de) m
• Hungarian: ébresztő (hu)
• Portuguese: despertador (pt) m
• Russian: будильник (ru) m (budílʹnik), сигнализация (ru) f (signalizácija) (alarm system)
• Spanish: despertador m

instance of an alarum ringing or clanging

• Bulgarian: обявяване на тревога
• Chinese:

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

• Finnish: hälytys
• Russian: сигнал тревоги m (signál trevógi)

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 Help:How to check translations.

Translations to be checked

• French: alarme
• Georgian: განგაში (gangaši)

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.

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

• Finnish: hälyttää (fi)
• German: Alarm schlagen (intransitive), alarmieren (transitive)

to surprise with apprehension of danger

• Catalan: alarmar (ca)
• Dutch: alarmeren (nl), beangstigen (nl)

• Finnish: pelästyttää
• German: alarmieren (de)

to keep in excitement; to disturb

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

• Finnish: huolestuttaa
• German: in Alarmstimmung versetzen

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 Help:How to check translations.

Translations to be checked

• French: alarmer, donner/sonner l'alerte
• German: Alarm schlagen (intransitive), alarmieren

Related terms

• alarming
• alarmist

References

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

Anagrams

• malar, Marla, marla, ramal

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Dutch

Pronunciation

• Audio

  (file)

• Rhymes: -ɑrm

Noun

alarm n (plural alarmen, diminutive alarmpje n)

1. alarm

Related terms

• alarmeren

Anagrams

• Almar

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Polish

Wikipedia ^pl

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈalarm/

• audio

  (file)

Noun

alarm m

1. alarm

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

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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

References

• “alarm” in Hrvatski jezični portal