Emily Dickinson Lexicon

alarm (-s), n. [OFr alarme, to the arms; NW says: Welsh alarm, a great shout.] (webplay: apprehension, danger, fear, notice, sound, terror).

1. Anxiety; dread; panic; foreboding of danger.
2. Clamor; din; outcry; warning sound; message of approaching hostility; [fig.] insect noises.
3. Noise; buzzing sound; notice of approach; [fig.] surprise; cause of apprehension.
4. Phrase. “Legions of Alarm”: armed legions; troops of soldiers; hunters bearing arms; [fig.] extreme danger; deadly peril.