petrifying

adjective

pet·​ri·​fy·​ing ˈpe-trə-ˌfī-iŋ 

: overwhelmingly frightening

"We have not made one decision on what to do yet. It's worse than scary. It's absolutely petrifying."

—Chris Spirou

What may be a petrifying experience for a child might seem trivial for you.

—The Daily Herald (Provo, Utah)

petrifyingly adverb

a petrifyingly dangerous situation

Examples of petrifying in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Take, for instance, Edward Scissorhands (1990), where a humanoid with scissors for hands proves to be more pure than petrifying. —Skyler Caruso, Peoplemag, 17 Oct. 2023

Amid the high stakes of a health crisis, the wall of language can make a scary situation downright petrifying. —Sixteen Ramos, USA TODAY, 11 Aug. 2023

Word History

Etymology

from present participle of petrify

First Known Use

1782, in the meaning defined above