thrilling

adjective

thrill·​ing ˈthri-liŋ 

: causing a feeling of great excitement or happiness

a thrilling discovery

a thrilling performance

… flashes into the end zone to give the Rams the winning touchdown in the most thrilling Super Bowl finish ever.

—Rick Reilly

thrillingly

ˈthri-liŋ-lē 

adverb

Who, in fact, are the good guys and who are the bad guys in the dramas that unfold here so thrillingly?

—Marie Winn

… this is a powerful and thrillingly strange movie …

—Terrence Rafferty

Synonyms of thrilling

• exciting
• breathtaking
• interesting
• intriguing

Examples of thrilling in a Sentence

a thrilling adventure movie

Recent Examples on the Web

Though there was a thrilling edge to their early work—the lightning-in-a-bottle sample drill of Polo Perks and Moh Baretta, that spine-tingling Pasto Flocco run—it’s been dulled a bit in favor of ambling minimalism. —Olivier Lafontant, Pitchfork, 6 Apr. 2026

But there is still no denying how thrilling that start was. —Jack Pitt-Brooke, New York Times, 2 Apr. 2026

However, for a few hours of adrenaline-pumping fun, grab some water skis or a tube from Lake Anna Outfitters to pull behind a boat at thrilling speeds. —Jennifer Prince, Southern Living, 2 Apr. 2026

The new land allows visitors to experience a distinctly magical version of 1920s Paris and take a ride on the thrilling Harry Potter and the Battle at the Ministry attraction. —Natalia Senanayake, PEOPLE, 1 Apr. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

1768, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for thrilling

• billing
• chilling
• drilling
• filling
• grilling
• killing
• milling
• pilling
• rilling
• schilling
• shilling
• skilling