to terrorize
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to terrorize
To systematically put someone or a group of people in fear and terror through violence, threats, or other cruel actions.
Die Miliz terrorisierte die Zivilbevölkerung über Monate hinweg.
The militia terrorized the civilian population for months.
The verb 'terrorisieren' (to terrorize) is derived from the noun 'der Terror' (terror). The ending '-isieren' is often used to form verbs from nouns, and here it means 'to carry out terror'.
Die Bande war dafür bekannt, die gesamte Nachbarschaft zu terrorisieren.
The gang was known for terrorizing the entire neighborhood.
'Terrorisieren' is a transitive verb. It always needs a direct object in the accusative, meaning the person or group that is being terrorized.
Der Diktator terrorisierte sein eigenes Volk.
The dictator terrorized his own people.
The verb has a serious meaning (violence, fear) and an exaggerated, colloquial meaning (to annoy greatly). The context makes the difference clear: Is it about war and violence, or about everyday, harmless annoyances?
Die Extremisten terrorisierten die Region mit Anschlägen.
The extremists terrorized the region with attacks.
In the meaning 'stark nerven' (to be extremely annoying), the word is used colloquially and exaggeratedly (hyperbolically). It is often supplemented with the preposition 'mit' to state what the person is annoying others with.
Er terrorisiert das ganze Büro mit seiner lauten Musik.
He terrorizes the whole office with his loud music.
to threaten
'bedrohen' and 'terrorisieren' can both mean that someone frightens other people. 'bedrohen' can be a single threat, for example with violence or other consequences. 'terrorisieren' is stronger: it usually describes repeated or systematic violence, threats, or cruel behavior that keeps people in constant fear. So 'terrorisieren' is more appropriate when the behavior lasts longer or is especially severe. For a single threat, 'bedrohen' is usually more precise.
Die Bande terrorisiert seit Monaten die Bewohner des Viertels.
The gang has been terrorizing the residents of the neighborhood for months.
Der Nachbar bedroht ihn mit einer Anzeige, wenn die Musik wieder so laut ist.
The neighbor threatens him with filing a complaint if the music is that loud again.