DREAD

dread |dred| verb [ trans. ] anticipate with great apprehension or fear : Jane was dreading the party | [with infinitive ] I dread to think what Russell will say. • archaic regard with great awe or reverence. noun 1 great fear or apprehension : the thought of returning to New Jersey filled her with dread | [in sing. ] I used to have a dread of Sunday afternoons. 2 informal a person with dreadlocks. • ( dreads) dreadlocks. adjective [ attrib. ] greatly feared; dreadful : he was stricken with the dread disease and died. • archaic regarded with awe; greatly revered : that dread being we dare oppose. ORIGIN Old English ādrǣdan, ondrǣdan; related to Old High German intrātan.