false alarm

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

Chronic pain, however, continues even after the injury has healed, creating a kind of false alarm that can last for weeks, months, or years.

From Science Daily • Apr. 27, 2026

Historical records reveal there were several close calls in the early ’80s, including the 1983 Soviet nuclear false alarm that could have triggered a nuclear war.

From Slate • Feb. 2, 2026

Others, the sweet relief of a false alarm and disaster narrowly averted.

From Los Angeles Times • Dec. 9, 2025

If there is no indication of a false alarm or if a second detector sends a warning, fire alarms are then normally activated throughout the building.

From BBC • Jan. 22, 2025

I laughed with them, at Teacher Li who had not made the message clear, at my own fears, at the whole false alarm.

From "Red Scarf Girl: A Memoir of the Cultural Revolution" by Ji-li Jiang