panicking Definition

panic
noun

1. A sudden overpowering fear that affects an individual, or especially one that grips a crowd or population.

Thesaurus: alarm, hysteria, fear, fright, scare, horror, terror, consternation, dismay.

verb

tr & intr
panicked, panicking
1. To feel panic, or make someone feel panic.

Thesaurus: overreact, lose one's cool (slang), lose one's nerve, go to pieces (slang); Antonym: relax.

Etymology: 17c: from French panique, from Greek panikon baseless terror, referring to fear caused by harmless sounds heard in the mountains and valleys, thought to be made by Pan, the god of flocks and pastures.