: gravely disturbing or frightening
a chilling case of abuse
Examples of chilling in a Sentence
a Southern visitor who was unused to the chilling air of a Northeast winter
Recent Examples on the Web
That long legal limbo had a chilling effect on speech.
—
Ashoka Mody, The Atlantic, 26 Apr. 2024
Garnish with additional toppings as desired. Serves: 2 Active time: 20 minutes
Total time: 3 hours, 20 minutes, including at least 3 hours chilling
Blueberry Lemon
½ cup fresh blueberries, plus more to garnish
1 tsp.
—Sabrina Weiss, Peoplemag, 26 Apr. 2024
Finally the truth emerges, in the form of chilling personal testimonies and shallow mass graves containing hundreds of bodies.
—Longreads, 26 Apr. 2024
The chilling effect of prosecutions is one of Trump’s main arguments for why presidents should have immunity.
—Bart Jansen, USA TODAY, 25 Apr. 2024
Despite the apology and then the apology for the apology, the truth is chilling.
—Benjamin Weinthal, Fox News, 21 Apr. 2024
Legal aid groups are securing protest permits, but still see a chilling effect
Legal aid groups say after the Oct. 7 attack, Israel waged an unprecedented crackdown on freedom of expression and assembly — for everyone, including Jewish Israelis, but especially for Palestinian citizens.
—Jennifer Ludden, NPR, 9 Apr. 2024
The letter also warned that turning over the recordings could have a chilling effect on future attempts by the Justice Department to interview other high-profile people or officials for sensitive investigations.
—Devlin Barrett, Washington Post, 8 Apr. 2024
In actual practice, Chloe Guidry and Izzy G. steal the show, along with other stuff, in performances that range from uncomfortable bad-girl posing to chilling, casual cruelty — Izzy G.’s character in particular.
—Bill Goodykoontz, The Arizona Republic, 16 Apr. 2024
Ashoka Mody, The Atlantic, 26 Apr. 2024
Garnish with additional toppings as desired. Serves: 2 Active time: 20 minutes
Total time: 3 hours, 20 minutes, including at least 3 hours chilling
Blueberry Lemon
½ cup fresh blueberries, plus more to garnish
1 tsp.
—Sabrina Weiss, Peoplemag, 26 Apr. 2024
Finally the truth emerges, in the form of chilling personal testimonies and shallow mass graves containing hundreds of bodies.
—Longreads, 26 Apr. 2024
The chilling effect of prosecutions is one of Trump’s main arguments for why presidents should have immunity.
—Bart Jansen, USA TODAY, 25 Apr. 2024
Despite the apology and then the apology for the apology, the truth is chilling.
—Benjamin Weinthal, Fox News, 21 Apr. 2024
Legal aid groups are securing protest permits, but still see a chilling effect
Legal aid groups say after the Oct. 7 attack, Israel waged an unprecedented crackdown on freedom of expression and assembly — for everyone, including Jewish Israelis, but especially for Palestinian citizens.
—Jennifer Ludden, NPR, 9 Apr. 2024
The letter also warned that turning over the recordings could have a chilling effect on future attempts by the Justice Department to interview other high-profile people or officials for sensitive investigations.
—Devlin Barrett, Washington Post, 8 Apr. 2024
In actual practice, Chloe Guidry and Izzy G. steal the show, along with other stuff, in performances that range from uncomfortable bad-girl posing to chilling, casual cruelty — Izzy G.’s character in particular.
—Bill Goodykoontz, The Arizona Republic, 16 Apr. 2024
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'chilling.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Dictionary Entries Near chilling
Cite this Entry
“Chilling.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/chilling. Accessed 2 May. 2024.
Copy CitationKids Definition
chilling
adjective
chill·ing
ˈchil-iŋ 
: very disturbing or frightening
a chilling case of abuse
chillingly
adverb
Love words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share