Effrayer vs. faire peur

In the French language, 'effrayer' and 'faire peur' are both expressions used to convey the action of causing fear or being scary. Despite their similarities, they have slight differences in usage, which can be highlighted through examples.

Effrayer

This verb is often used to talk about something causing fear directly and can be stronger in tone.
Le bruit soudain dans la nuit m'a effrayé.
(The sudden noise at night scared me.)
Les histoires de fantômes tendent à effrayer les enfants.
(Ghost stories tend to frighten children.)
Il ne faut pas effrayer les animaux dans la forêt.
(We should not scare the animals in the forest.)

Faire peur

'Faire peur' is a phrase that also means to scare; however, it can be less intense and is used more generally.
Ce film d'horreur va te faire peur.
(This horror movie is going to scare you.)
Il aime faire peur à ses amis avec des blagues.
(He likes to scare his friends with pranks.)
La perspective de perdre son travail fait peur à beaucoup de gens.
(The prospect of losing their job scares a lot of people.)

Summary

'Effrayer' and 'faire peur' both describe instilling fear, where 'effrayer' often carries a more intense connotation and is usually used with a direct object (someone or something that receives the action). In contrast, 'faire peur' is more versatile and can refer to causing fear in a broader sense.