Definition of petrification
noun
[mass noun] 1 (also petrifaction) the process by which organic matter exposed to minerals over a long period is turned into a stony substance: the processes of petrification figurativehe taught me to take risks, to avoid petrification [count noun] an organic object which has been turned to stone.
2a state of such extreme fear that one is unable to move:his heavy footfalls served to spur Paul out of his petrification
