The Spanish word 'pavor' comes from the Latin word of the same spelling, 'pavor', meaning 'terror' or 'fright'. This Latin noun was formed by combining the verb 'pavere' (meaning 'to be frightened') with the suffix '-or', which was used to create nouns indicating the result or state of an action. This formation pattern is similar to how English words like 'terror' or 'horror' are constructed.

A related Spanish word is 'pavoroso' (meaning 'dreadful' or 'frightful'), which is derived from 'pavor'. While 'pavor' itself might be less common in everyday Spanish, you might encounter it in literary contexts or formal speech when describing intense fear or dread.

While English doesn't have a direct cognate of 'pavor', we can see a connection to words like 'panic' and 'petrified', which share an ancient root expressing fear or fright. The English word 'pavid' (meaning 'timid' or 'fearful') is a rare word that comes from the same Latin root 'pavere', though it's rarely used in modern English.