thrill

verb \ ˈthril \

|Updated on: 12 Aug 2018

Examples: thrill in a Sentence

Definition of thrill

thrilled; thrilling; thrills

transitive verb

1 a : to cause to experience a sudden sharp feeling of excitement

the news thrilled him

b : to cause to have a shivering or tingling sensation

2 : to cause to vibrate or tremble perceptibly

intransitive verb

1 : to become thrilled:

a : to experience a sudden sharp excitement

b : tingle, throb

2 : to move or pass so as to cause a sudden wave of emotion

3 : tremble, vibrate

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thrill

noun

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thrillingly

play \ˈthri-liŋ-lē\ adverb

See thrill defined for English-language learners

See thrill defined for kids

Examples of thrill in a Sentence

Circus performers still thrill audiences today.
I was thrilled by their decision.

Recent Examples of thrill from the Web

So we were thrilled when Paramount House Hotel opened in April above Paramount Coffee Project (a bustling café with fabulous avo toast and eggs) in central Surry Hills.

— erin florio, Condé Nast Traveler, "What to Do in Sydney: The Black Book," 5 July 2018
Or when Milos Raonic–a finalist in 2016 who’s been bitten by the injury bug—clocks in at 91 minutes, he must be thrilled.

— jon wertheim, SI.com, "Five Thoughts From Day One of Wimbledon," 2 July 2018
They’ll be thrilled with the efficient and healthy and hang-in-there Kershaw.

— bill plaschke, latimes.com, "This Clayton Kershaw should be good enough for Dodgers," 29 June 2018
When Thurmond related all of this to his superiors, they were thrilled.

— ben austen, The New Republic, "How one American city chose to tackle crime, combat racism, and reckon with the legacy of police brutality," 21 June 2018
So he was thrilled about the opportunity to go to China.

— jon niccum, kansascity, "Kansas crop artist Stan Herd's massive China 'earthwork' may outlast the Great Wall," 14 June 2018
The tickets were in the upper, upper, upper balcony of Radio City Music Hall, but I was thrilled at the chance to go.

— andrew rannells, New York Times, "Andrew Rannells: The First Time I Watched the Tony Awards," 5 June 2018
We are thrilled that Imperial Investments plans to invest in Oswego.

— linda girardi, Aurora Beacon-News, "Fine dining restaurant, luxury apartments may be built where Old Village Hall used to stand in Oswego," 1 June 2018
They were thrilled when Issa was among the first prominent Trump allies to announce his retirement.

— maeve reston, CNN, "How a surge of progressive energy could backfire on Democrats in California," 31 May 2018

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'thrill.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Origin and Etymology of thrill

Middle English thirlen, thrillen to pierce, from Old English thyrlian, from thyrel hole, from thurh through — more at ¹through

NEW! Time Traveler

First Known Use: 1592

in the meaning defined at transitive sense 1a

See Words from the same year

thrill Synonyms

Synonyms

charge, electrify, excite, exhilarate, galvanize, intoxicate, pump up, titillate, turn on;

Near Antonyms

bore, jade, pall, tire, weary;

deject, demoralize, discourage, dishearten, dispirit;

bewitch, captivate, charm, delight, enchant, enthrall (or enthral), hypnotize, mesmerize, rivet, spellbind;

interest, intrigue, tantalize;

THRILL Defined for English Language Learners

thrill

verb

Definition of thrill for English Language Learners

: to cause (someone) to feel very excited or happy
: to feel very excited or happy about something

THRILL Defined for Kids

thrill

verb \ ˈthril \

Definition of thrill for Students

thrilled; thrilling

: to have or cause to have a sudden feeling of excitement or pleasure

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thriller

noun

History for thrill

In the 1300s a person who was thrilled might not live long enough to tell about it, because the Middle English verb thrillen—the ancestor of our word thrill—meant literally “to pierce” or “stab,” as with a sword or spear. Thrillen was a variant of thirlen, which continued Old English thyrlian, derived from thyrel, “hole.” (The word thyrel also entered into Old English nosthyrl, literally, “nose hole,” the ancestor of modern English nostril.) Because the feeling of being pierced is a little like the experience of being moved by a strong emotion, thrill came to mean “to cause someone to feel excited.”