Trepidation refers to a feeling of fear that causes someone to hesitate because they think that something bad or unpleasant is going to happen.

// The students felt a sense of trepidation upon being summoned to the principal's office.

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"Met by some with cautious optimism, others with trepidation, and others with doomsday predictions, there is no doubt that AI is here to stay and changing work in ways yet to be fully revealed." — Laurel Donnellan, Forbes, 28 May 2025

If you've ever trembled with fright, you know something of both the sensation and etymology of trepidation. The word comes from the Latin verb trepidare, which means "to tremble." (Trepidare also gave English the verb trepidate, meaning "to feel nervous or apprehensive," but that word is now considered archaic.) Early meanings of trepidation, such as "tremulous motion" or "tremor," reflect its "shaky" origins. Over time, however, those senses gave way to our modern meaning referring to fearful hesitancy.