Petrify Definition

pĕtrə-fī

petrified, petrifies, petrifying

verb

petrified, petrifies, petrifying

To become petrified.

Webster's New World

To replace the normal cells of (organic matter) with silica or other mineral deposits; re-form as a stony substance.

Webster's New World

To make rigid, inflexible, or inert; harden or deaden.

Webster's New World

To paralyze or make numb, as with fear; stupefy; stun.

Webster's New World

(intransitive) To become stone, or of a stony hardness, as organic matter by calcareous deposits.

Wiktionary

Synonyms:

Antonyms:

Origin of Petrify

Middle English petrifien to harden from Old French petrifier Latin petra rock (from Greek petrā per-² in Indo-European roots) Old French -fier -fy

From American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition
From Medieval Latin petrificare, from petra (“rock").

From Wiktionary