petrify
Scare completely stiff
Petrify means to turn to stone.
In geology, organic material petrifies when minerals gradually replace its original structure: petrified wood.
The figurative sense dominates everyday use—to petrify someone is to paralyze them with fear or shock: The sound of footsteps in the dark petrified her.
Someone petrified is frozen in place, unable to move or react.
Loss of muscle function
- frozenSolidified by extreme cold
- immobilizeStop all motion
- dreadIntense anticipatory fear
- horrorExtreme fear or disgust
panic · fright · alarm · trepidation · apprehension · fear · nightmare · chill
Hite calcium deposits form
- hardenMake or become firm
- solidifyMake or become hard
- mineralizeConvert to inorganic matter
- calciumElement twenty, builds bones
silica · crystal · rock · geological · lithify · silica · geological
Preserved ancient organism
- mineralizationConversion to mineral form
- sedimentParticles settling in liquid
- imprintMark from applied pressure
- preservationMaintaining something's condition
paleontology · amber · trilobite · dinosaurs · extinct · geology · excavation · stratification
Not easily bent
- hardenedMade tough or unfeeling
- immovableIncapable of being shifted
- solidifiedMade firm, not fluid
- frozenSolidified by extreme cold
fixed · unyielding · inflexible · unbending · calcified · ossified · set · firm
Shocked into speechlessness
- dumbfoundedRendered speechless by surprise
- flabbergastedOverwhelmed with amazement
- amazedOverwhelmed by sudden wonder
- stupefiedOverwhelmed into mental blankness
thunderstruck · aghast · gobsmacked · speechless · incredulous · overwhelmed · astounded · dazed
paralysis
Loss of muscle function
- frozenSolidified by extreme cold
- immobilizeStop all motion
- dreadIntense anticipatory fear
horror · panic · fright · alarm · trepidation · apprehension · fear · nightmare · chill · shudder
calcify
Hite calcium deposits form
- hardenMake or become firm
- solidifyMake or become hard
- mineralizeConvert to inorganic matter
calcium · silica · crystal · rock · geological · lithify · calcium · silica · geological
fossil
Preserved ancient organism
- mineralizationConversion to mineral form
- sedimentParticles settling in liquid
- imprintMark from applied pressure
preservation · paleontology · amber · trilobite · dinosaurs · extinct · geology · excavation · stratification · calcification
stiff
Not easily bent
- hardenedMade tough or unfeeling
- immovableIncapable of being shifted
- solidifiedMade firm, not fluid
frozen · fixed · unyielding · inflexible · unbending · calcified · ossified · set · firm · indurate
stunned
Shocked into speechlessness
- dumbfoundedRendered speechless by surprise
- flabbergastedOverwhelmed with amazement
- amazedOverwhelmed by sudden wonder
stupefied · thunderstruck · aghast · gobsmacked · speechless · incredulous · overwhelmed · astounded · dazed · shocked
- petrified woodMineralized tree fossils
- petrified forestsTrees mineralized over millennia