false alarm

false a·larm

F f

Transcription

- US Pronunciation
- US IPA
- UK Pronunciation
- UK IPA
- [fawls uh-lahrm]
- /fɔls əˈlɑrm/
- /fɔːls əˈlɑːm/

- US Pronunciation
- US IPA
- [fawls uh-lahrm]
- /fɔls əˈlɑrm/

Definitions of false alarm words

noun false alarm a false report of a fire in progress to a fire department. 1
noun false alarm something that excites unfounded alarm or expectation: Rumors of an impending transit strike proved to be a false alarm. 1
countable noun false alarm When you think something dangerous is about to happen, but then discover that you were mistaken, you can say that it was a false alarm. 0
noun false alarm a needless alarm given in error or with intent to deceive 0
noun false alarm an occasion on which danger is perceived but fails to materialize 0

See all 5 definitions of false alarm

Information block about the term

Origin of false alarm

First appearance:

before 1570

One of the 33% oldest English words

First recorded in 1570-80

Historical Comparancy

Parts of speech for False alarm

noun

adjective

verb

adverb

pronoun

preposition

conjunction

determiner

exclamation

Full grammatical hierarchy of False alarm

false alarm popularity

A pretty common term. Usually people know it’s meaning, but prefer to use a more spread out synonym. About 39% of English native speakers know the meaning and use word.

According to our data about 62% of words is more used. This is a rare but used term. It occurs in the pages of specialized literature and in the speech of educated people.

false alarm usage trend in Literature

This diagram is provided by Google Ngram Viewer

Synonyms for false alarm

noun false alarm

dud — a device, person, or enterprise that proves to be a failure.

Just one Synonym for false alarm