आतंक (aatank)
noun
A single core sense: intense fear or terror, often at a societal or collective scale rather than a personal fright. Closely tied to आतंकवाद (aatankvaad, 'terrorism') and आतंकवादी (aatankvaadii, 'terrorist'), which are separate lemmas built on this root.
Sense
1
:
terror, reign of fear, dread (collective/large-scale)
noun, masculine
Synonyms: भय (bhay, more general/personal fear), दहशत (dahshat), खौफ़ (khauf, colloquial)
Frequency: high
Cultural Note: You'll hear this word constantly in Hindi news broadcasts -- डाकू का आतंक (daakoo kaa aatank, 'the terror of the bandit') or इलाके में आतंक का माहौल (ilaake men aatank kaa maahaul, 'an atmosphere of terror in the area') are classic phrasings. It has a slightly formal, media-register weight to it compared to the more everyday डर (dar), so native speakers reach for आतंक (aatank) when describing something gripping a whole community, not just one person's nerves.
Common Mistakes: 1) Learners often reach for this word to mean ordinary personal fear (like fear of an exam or a dog), but आतंक (aatank) is reserved for a heavier, larger-scale dread -- a terrorized city, a criminal's reign of fear, a disease's grip on a region. For everyday personal fear, डर (dar) is the natural choice. 2) The common verb pairing is आतंक फैलाना (aatank phailaanaa, 'to spread terror') or आतंक फैलना (aatank phailnaa, 'terror to spread'), not a direct verb form of आतंक itself -- the word doesn't verb on its own.
Sample Sentences:
पूरे इलाके में डाकुओं का आतंक फैला हुआ है।
The terror of the bandits has spread across the whole area.
(poore ilaake men daakuon kaa aatank phailaa huaa hai।)
उस आतंकवादी ने शहर में कई सालों तक आतंक फैलाया।
That terrorist spread terror in the city for many years.
(us aatankvaadii ne shahar men kaii saalon tak aatank phailaayaa।)
खबरों में कहा जा रहा है कि गाँव में आतंक का माहौल है।
The news is reporting that there is an atmosphere of terror in the village.
(khabron men kahaa jaa rahaa hai ki gaanv men aatank kaa maahaul hai।)
अगर सरकार सख्त कदम नहीं उठाती, तो यह आतंक और बढ़ता।
If the government hadn't taken strict measures, this terror would have grown even more.
(agar sarkaar sakht kadam nahiin uthaatii, to yah aatank aur badhtaa।)
पुलिस ने उस माफिया के आतंक को खत्म कर दिया।
The police put an end to that mafia's reign of terror.
(pulis ne us maaphiyaa ke aatank ko khatm kar diyaa।)
यह जरूरी है कि सरकार आतंक फैलाने वालों को कड़ी सजा दे।
It is necessary that the government give harsh punishment to those who spread terror.
(yah jaroorii hai ki sarkaar aatank phailaane vaalon ko kadii sajaa de।)
इस इलाके में उस गैंग का आतंक ऐसा था कि लोग रात में घर से बाहर नहीं निकलते थे।
That gang's terror in this area was such that people wouldn't step out of their homes at night.
(is ilaake men us gaing kaa aatank aisaa thaa ki log raat men ghar se baahar nahiin nikalte the।)
आतंक फैलाने वालों के खिलाफ कड़ी कार्रवाई की जाएगी।
Strict action will be taken against those who spread terror.
(aatank phailaane vaalon ke khilaaph kadii kaarrvaaii kii jaaegii।)
उसके आतंक का सामना करना आसान नहीं था।
Facing his reign of terror was not easy.
(uske aatank kaa saamnaa karnaa aasaan nahiin thaa।)
जब तक वह सरगना जेल नहीं गया, तब तक उसका आतंक बना रहा।
Until that kingpin went to jail, his reign of terror persisted.
(jab tak vah saragnaa jel nahiin gayaa, tab tak uskaa aatank banaa rahaa।)
उस तानाशाह का आतंक पूरे देश पर छाया हुआ था।
That dictator's terror loomed over the entire country.
(us taanaashaah kaa aatank poore desh par chhaayaa huaa thaa।)
Morphology
Noun
(sg.m.direct):
आतंक
(aatank)
(sg.m.oblique):
आतंक
(aatank)
(pl.m.direct):
आतंक
(aatank)
(pl.m.oblique):
आतंकों
(aatankon)