: one that thrills
especially
: a work of fiction or drama designed to hold the interest by the use of a high degree of intrigue, adventure, or suspense
Examples of thriller in a Sentence
His latest novel is a political thriller.
those television awards are hardly thrillers since the same people win year after year
Recent Examples on the Web
The psychological thriller, penned by Pulitzer Prize- and Tony-winning writer Tracy Letts (Coon's real life husband), cultivates fear slowly.
—
Shania Russell, Entertainment Weekly, 9 Jan. 2026
The new season of Prime Video's high-octane thriller jumps eight years ahead of the explosive Season 1 finale with Pine running a quiet surveillance unit in London under the alias Alex Goodwin, a low-level MI6 officer.
—Saman Shafiq, USA Today, 8 Jan. 2026
Marc Guggenheim is headed to the future with The Whisper War, a sci-fi mystery thriller due out next month.
—Aaron Couch, HollywoodReporter, 8 Jan. 2026
What If starring Daniel Radcliffe and Zoe Kazan, also producing the sci-fi thriller Kin.
—Matt Grobar, Deadline, 8 Jan. 2026
See All Example Sentences for thriller
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Shania Russell, Entertainment Weekly, 9 Jan. 2026
The new season of Prime Video's high-octane thriller jumps eight years ahead of the explosive Season 1 finale with Pine running a quiet surveillance unit in London under the alias Alex Goodwin, a low-level MI6 officer.
—Saman Shafiq, USA Today, 8 Jan. 2026
Marc Guggenheim is headed to the future with The Whisper War, a sci-fi mystery thriller due out next month.
—Aaron Couch, HollywoodReporter, 8 Jan. 2026
What If starring Daniel Radcliffe and Zoe Kazan, also producing the sci-fi thriller Kin.
—Matt Grobar, Deadline, 8 Jan. 2026
See All Example Sentences for thriller
Cite this Entry
“Thriller.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/thriller. Accessed 9 Jan. 2026.
Copy CitationKids Definition
thriller
noun
thril·ler
ˈthril-ər 
: one that thrills
especially
: a work of fiction or drama with a great deal of action, mystery, adventure, or suspense
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