1.
feeling of fear; sense of dread; fearfulness
A subjective sensation of fear or dread. Emphasizes the emotional experience of being afraid rather than the cause of the fear itself.
強い恐怖感を覚えた。
I felt a strong sense of fear.
地震のあと、しばらく恐怖感が消えなかった。
After the earthquake, the feeling of fear didn't go away for a while.
高所恐怖症の人は、高い場所に立つだけで恐怖感に襲われる。
People with acrophobia are overwhelmed by fear just by standing in a high place.
暗い道を一人で歩くときの恐怖感は、誰にでもあるものだ。
Everyone experiences a sense of fear when walking alone on a dark road.
Composed of 恐怖 (fear, terror) and 感 (feeling, sensation). The 感 suffix turns the abstract concept of fear into a personal, felt sensation. Part of a productive pattern where 感 is added to emotion or state words to describe the subjective experience.
COMMON COLLOCATIONS:
- 恐怖感を覚える: to feel a sense of fear
- 恐怖感に襲われる: to be seized by fear
- 恐怖感が消えない: the fear won't go away
- 強い恐怖感: a strong sense of fear
RELATED PATTERNS:
感 as a suffix for subjective feelings:
- 不安感: feeling of anxiety
- 達成感: sense of accomplishment
- 孤独感: feeling of loneliness
SIMILAR WORDS:
- 恐怖: fear, terror — the emotion itself; more objective and general
- 恐れ: fear, apprehension — slightly literary; often used for fear of future events
- 怖さ: scariness — more colloquial; describes how scary something is