Panic
Etymology
From Greek "panikos," “of Pan” — the goat-legged god of wild places, said to strike travelers with sudden, groundless terror in lonely woods, especially at noon or night. “Panic” is thus a fossilized attribution: an emotion named for the deity once blamed for causing it. The animal-like herd stampede still carries his name.
noun · /PAN-ik/
A sudden, overwhelming surge of fear that overrides reason and demands immediate action.
What it names
Use it for fear that seizes control — the spike that makes crowds stampede and minds go blank.
Example
When the alarm sounded and the exit jammed, panic rippled through the theater.
Related idea
Against fear and anxiety: fear is a measured response to a real danger and anxiety is a slow simmer, but panic is fear that has slipped its leash — acute, physical, and overwhelming, often out of proportion to any actual threat. A panic attack is exactly this: the alarm system firing full-blast with nothing to fire at.