Her maids were old, and if she took a new one, / You might be sure she was a perfect fright; / She did this during even her husband's life— / I recommend as much to every wife.
an emotion experienced in anticipation of some specific pain or danger (usually accompanied by a desire to flee or fight)
Fright is a sudden feeling of fear, especially the fear that you feel when something unpleasant surprises you. The steam pipes rattled suddenly, and Franklin uttered a shriek and jumped with fright The birds smashed into the top of their cages in fright To hide my fright I asked a question
If a person or animal takes fright at something, they are suddenly frightened by it, and want to run away or to stop doing what they are doing. An untrained horse had taken fright at the sound of gunfire When costs soared, the studio took fright and recalled the company from Rome
A fright is an experience which makes you suddenly afraid. The snake picked up its head and stuck out its tongue which gave everyone a fright The last time you had a real fright, you nearly crashed the car. = scare