(おそ)ろしさ

おそろしさ
noun
fearfulness; terror; dreadfulness
1. fearfulness; terror; dreadfulness; how frightening (something) is
The quality or degree of being frightening. Formed by attaching the noun-forming suffix さ to the i-adjective (おそ)ろしい (frightening, terrible).
戦争(せんそう)(おそ)ろしさを()る。
Learn the dreadfulness of war.
無知(むち)(おそ)ろしさに気付(きづ)いた。
I realized how frightening ignorance is.
自然災害(しぜんさいがい)(おそ)ろしさを(あらた)めて(かん)じた。
I felt anew the terror of natural disasters.

Noun form of (おそ)ろしい (frightening). The suffix さ converts an adjective into a noun denoting the quality or degree.

COMMON COLLOCATIONS:

  • 〜の(おそ)ろしさを()る: come to know the terror of
  • (おそ)ろしさに(ふる)える: tremble with fear
  • (おそ)ろしさを(かん)じる: feel terror
  • (おそ)ろしさを(つた)える: convey how frightening (something) is

SIMILAR WORDS:

  • 恐怖(きょうふ): fear, dread — the emotion itself, as felt by a person
  • (こわ)さ: scariness — more colloquial; everyday register
  • (おそ)ろしさ: dreadfulness — the quality of being terrible, often spoken of objectively