tantalizing

adjective

tan·​ta·​liz·​ing ˈtan-tə-ˌlī-ziŋ 

: possessing a quality that arouses or stimulates desire or interest

also : mockingly or teasingly out of reach

tantalizingly adverb

Examples of tantalizing in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Fans still on a high from April’s NFL Draft will need to wait another month for teams to be back on the clock officially, but Tuesday’s NHL Lottery and Sunday’s NBA Lottery will offer a tantalizing taste of draft season and dictate the destinations of some of their sports’ best young talent. —John Riker, New York Times, 4 May 2026

Waking up to the tantalizing smell of Spiced Orange Rolls baking in the oven is a present for the whole household. —Hallie Milstein, Southern Living, 1 May 2026

Tough yet romantic, climbing roses (Rosa cultivars) have flower power and tantalizing scents. —Megan Hughes, Better Homes & Gardens, 30 Apr. 2026

The dining room was dark, save for the tantalizing buffet station, which gleamed like the full moon over the cloudless Aegean. —Adam Dalva, Longreads, 29 Apr. 2026

Word History

Etymology

from present participle of tantalize

First Known Use

circa 1683, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for tantalizing

• advertising
• amortizing
• analyzing
• anodizing
• appetizing
• atomizing
• authorising
• authorizing
• carbonizing
• carburizing
• catalyzing
• centralising