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Meaning of alarm in English

alarm
noun
us
/əˈlɑːrm/ uk
/əˈlɑːm/

alarm noun (WARNING)

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[ C ]
a warning of danger, usually a loud noise or flashing light:
He was almost home when the alarm sounded.
They built fires that flashed the alarm from hilltop to hilltop.
See also
false alarm
B1 [ C ]
a device that makes a loud noise to warn of danger:
burglar alarm
car alarm
fire alarm
smoke alarm
A2 [ C ]
an alarm clock
 
Paul Bricknell/Dorling Kindersley/GettyImages
B1 [ C ]
If an electronic device such as a watch or computer has an alarm, it can be set to make a noise at a particular time.
one-/two-/three-/four-, etc. alarm fire
in the U.S. and Canada, a fire of a particular level of seriousness. A one-alarm fire is the least serious, and needs the fewest vehicles and people to put it out:
A two-alarm fire has damaged a historic building.
If you were a fire chief at a 16-alarm fire, would you want him working for you?
a bad situation of a particular level of seriousness, with a one-alarm fire being the least serious:
In a world aflame with protest, the region stood out as a raging ten-alarm fire.
The scandal ignited a one-alarm fire in the political world, with accusations flying and reputations at risk.
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SMART Vocabulary: related words and phrases
Threats & warnings
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You can also find related words, phrases, and synonyms in the topics:

alarm noun (WORRY)

C2 [ U ]
sudden worry and fear, especially that something dangerous or unpleasant might happen:
cause alarm I didn't tell her that he was late because I didn't want to cause her any alarm.
Residents have reacted with alarm to news of a proposed new road.
Synonyms
concern (WORRY)
consternation
distress
preoccupation
worry
Thesaurus: synonyms, antonyms, and examples
fear
  • fearI have a terrible fear of heights.
  • terrorShe fled from the attacker in terror.
  • dreadThe thought of giving a speech filled me with dread.
  • alarmI don't want to cause you any alarm, but there's a rattlesnake in the path ahead of you.
  • frightThe family ran from their home in fright when the earthquake struck.
  • panicPanic spread through the crowd when someone shouted "Fire!"
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More examplesFewer examples
SMART Vocabulary: related words and phrases
Fear & phobias
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You can also find related words, phrases, and synonyms in the topics:

Idiom

raise the alarm
alarm
verb [ T ]
us
/əˈlɑːrm/ uk
/əˈlɑːm/
C1
to make someone worried or frightened:
I didn't want to alarm him by telling him that she was sick.
SMART Vocabulary: related words and phrases
Causing anxiety and worry
See more results »
(Definition of alarm from the Cambridge Advanced Learner's Dictionary & Thesaurus © Cambridge University Press)

alarm | Intermediate English

alarm
noun
us
/əˈlɑrm/

alarm noun (ANXIETY)

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[ U ]
sudden anxiety and fear, esp. that something very bad or dangerous might happen:
Nicholas detected a note of alarm in her voice.

alarm noun (WARNING)

[ C ]
a warning signal such as a loud noise or flashing light that gets your immediate attention, or a device that produces such a signal:
Firefighters said the tragedy could have been avoided if the house had had smoke alarms.
alarm
verb [ T ]
us
/əˈlɑrm/
to feel or cause sudden anxiety and fear:
Guests were sometimes alarmed to learn that we never locked the doors of the house.

alarming

adjective us
/əˈlɑr·mɪŋ/
Stock prices began to rise at an alarming rate.
(Definition of alarm from the Cambridge Academic Content Dictionary © Cambridge University Press)

Examples of alarm

alarm
This proposal need not alarm the correction-officers union.
From New York Post
The second, is that the shofar is seen as an alarm, a kind of wake-up call.
From CNN
The presidential alarm is the only one that smartphone users can't disable on their phones.
From NPR
The alarms ring and the red lights flash for a few seconds more, just in case.
From The Atlantic
This means that for a teenager, a 7 a.m. alarm call is the equivalent of a 5 a.m. start for people in their 50s.
From Slate Magazine
I went to take a nap "for 20 minutes," set my alarm, and woke up four hours later.
From Fast Company
The muzak was replaced by squealing fire alarms.
From NPR
There's also a total silence mode that will turn everything off -- including alarms.
From The Verge
So set a cell-phone alarm and then get back to business.
From Huffington Post
A lot of time is spent monitoring alarms, including false ones.
From Chicago Tribune
Instead of a steady stream of beeps, minutes can pass without an alarm.
From NPR
Patients can die when an important alarm is missed, or an electrode on a patient's chest comes unstuck, or a monitor's battery goes dead.
From NPR
The hospital also upgraded some low-level "warning" alarms to a higher level, signifying "crisis" -- for instance, a pause in heart rhythm.
From NPR
It's flagship feature was its quick set alarm, which allowed users to schedule an alarm with just a single swipe or two.
From TechCrunch
These examples are from corpora and from sources on the web. Any opinions in the examples do not represent the opinion of the Cambridge Dictionary editors or of Cambridge University Press or its licensors.

Collocations with alarm

alarm

These are words often used in combination with alarm.

Click on a collocation to see more examples of it.

alarm pheromone
Nevertheless, the results suggest that alarm pheromone compounds have significant potential to improve the efficacy of baits for the control of grass-cutting ants.
From the Cambridge English Corpus
alarm signal
In treated colonies, but not controls, workers were excitable and most began head rapping, an alarm signal, if the colony was disturbed.
From the Cambridge English Corpus
alarm system
In the case of frequent fits, especially where there is a warning aura, the patient may wish to be provided with an alarm system.
From the Cambridge English Corpus
These examples are from corpora and from sources on the web. Any opinions in the examples do not represent the opinion of the Cambridge Dictionary editors or of Cambridge University Press or its licensors.
See all collocations with alarm
What is the pronunciation of alarm?
 

Translations of alarm

in Chinese (Traditional)
警告, 警報, 警報器…
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in Chinese (Simplified)
警告, 警报, 警报器…
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in Spanish
alarma, despertador, función de alarma…
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in Portuguese
alarme, despertador, inquietude…
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in more languages
in Marathi
in Japanese
in Turkish
in French
in Catalan
in Dutch
in Tamil
in Hindi
in Gujarati
in Danish
in Swedish
in Malay
in German
in Norwegian
in Urdu
in Ukrainian
in Telugu
in Bengali
in Czech
in Indonesian
in Thai
in Vietnamese
in Polish
in Korean
in Italian
धोक्यची सूचना, सहसा मोठ्या आवाजात किंवा चमकणाऱ्या प्रकाशाद्वारे दिला जाणारा धोक्याचा इशारा, एक यंत्र जे मोठ्या आवाजात धोक्याची सूचना देते…
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警報, 目覚まし時計, 警戒…
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uyandırma, ikaz, alarm…
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réveil [masculine], alarme [feminine], alerte [feminine]…
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alarma, despertador, alarmar…
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alarm, schrik, wekker…
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ஆபத்து பற்றிய எச்சரிக்கை, பொதுவாக உரத்த சத்தம் அல்லது ஒளிரும் ஒளி, ஆபத்தை எச்சரிக்க உரத்த சத்தம் எழுப்பும் சாதனம்…
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अलार्म, खतरे की चेतावनी देने वाली तेज़ आवाज़ या रोशनी, (एक उपकरण) अलार्म…
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ચેતવણીની ઘંટડી, જોખમનીભયસૂચક ચેતવણી, મોટો અવાજ કરીને ભય…
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alarm, vækkeur, forskrækkelse…
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larm[signal], oro, ängslan…
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amaran, ketakutan, jam penggera…
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der Alarm, Alarm…, die Besorgnis…
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alarm [masculine], panikk [masculine], forurolige…
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الارم, خطرے کی گھنٹی, الارم (خطرے سے آگاہ کرنے کا تیز آواز پیدا کرنے والا آلہ)…
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тривога, сигнал тривоги, сум'яття…
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ప్రమాదం గురించి హెచ్చరిక, సాధారణంగా పెద్ద శబ్దం లేక మెరుస్తున్న కాంతి, అలారం…
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বিপদ সঙ্কেত, বিপদসংকেত, সতর্ক করার যন্ত্র…
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alarm, poplašné znamení, obava…
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tanda bahaya, alarm, kekhawatiran…
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สัญญาณเตือนภัย, เสียงเตือน, ความกลัว…
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báo động, sự sợ hãi, báo thức…
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alarm, budzik, niepokój…
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경보, 알람, 경종…
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allarme, sveglia, allarmare…
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