Meaning & use
frisson
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Meaning
nouncountableliterary
A quick, sharp feeling of excitement, fear or delight, often shown by a small shiver.
Grammar: Often followed by of: a frisson of excitement.
Patterns
- a frisson of something
- feel a frisson
A frisson of excitement ran through the audience as the lights dimmed.
She felt a frisson of fear when the door creaked open.
There was a faint frisson in the room when the winner was announced.
Word forms
| plural | frissons |
|---|
Common combinations
- a frisson of excitement
- A frisson of excitement passed through the crowd as the band appeared.
- a frisson of fear
- He felt a frisson of fear on the dark staircase.
- a frisson of anticipation
- A frisson of anticipation filled the classroom before the results.
- a delicious frisson
- The ghost story gave the campers a delicious frisson.
- feel a frisson
- I always feel a frisson when I step onto a stage.
Synonyms and how they differ
- thrill
- Thrill is the common everyday word and can last longer, while frisson is a brief tingle.
- shiver
- Shiver describes the physical shake itself, but frisson names the feeling behind it.
- tingle
- Tingle is a lighter, more physical word and does not carry frisson's slightly sophisticated tone.
- flutter
- Flutter suggests nervous excitement in the stomach or heart, usually softer than frisson.
Word family
- frissons noun
- the plural form
- frissonant adjective
- causing a thrill (very rare)
Commonly confused: frisson or fricassee?
frisson vs fricassee
Fricassee is a stewed dish of meat in white sauce and has no connection to a thrill.
Practice
A ___ of excitement ran through the crowd as the curtain rose.
Choose one answer.
A frisson of excitement is the set phrase for a quick thrill. Fraction and fragment mean a small part, and friction means rubbing or conflict, so none give the right meaning.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “frisson”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.