THRILLER Synonyms: 8 Similar and Opposite Words

thriller

noun

ˈthri-lər

as in suspenser

something (as a close contest) that induces much suspense as to its outcome those television awards are hardly thrillers since the same people win year after year

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Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Recent Examples of thriller Gray’s crime thriller stars Adam Driver, Scarlett Johansson, and Miles Teller in a story about two brothers striving to achieve the American Dream only to get caught up with the Russian Mafia. —

Brian Welk, IndieWire, 7 May 2026 The New York Knicks survived a back-and-forth thriller in Game 2 against the Philadelphia 76ers and hung on for a 108-102 home win to take a 2-0 series lead in this Eastern Conference semifinals series. —

Tony Jones, New York Times, 7 May 2026 This dark psychological thriller about guilt, obsession, truth and morality arises out of just a single conversation between strangers who happen to sit next to one another. —

Literary Hub, 6 May 2026 Lu’s lawyer, John Carman portrayed the case as a mundane bureaucratic blip, not an international spy thriller. —

Michael R. Sisak, Fortune, 6 May 2026 See All Example Sentences for thriller

Recent Examples of Synonyms for thriller

suspenser

Noun

Directed by Nelicia Low, the suspenser follows a young fencer struggling with keeping his secret crush on a fellow fencer from his homophobic mother.

— Vivienne Chow, Variety, 17 May 2022
On the other hand, the story introduces fictional characters and elements that give it the air of a suspenser, exactly the sort for which Harris is so popular.

— Frank Scheck, The Hollywood Reporter, 20 Jan. 2022