French word effrayer comes from Frankish *friþu, Latin evanescere, Latin *fridu, Old French freer, and later Old French es- (Indicates movement away or separation.)
| Dictionary entry | Language | Definition |
|---|---|---|
| *friþu | Frankish (frk) | |
| evanescere | Latin (lat) | |
| *fridu | Latin (lat) | |
| freer | Old French (fro) | |
| es- | Old French (fro) | Indicates movement away or separation. |
| *exfrido | Latin (lat) | (Vulgar Latin) I terrify, frighten. |
| esfraer | Old French (fro) | |
| effreer | Middle French (frm) | (transitive) to scare. |
| effrayer | French (fra) | To affray, to frighten, to scare. |