thrill

1 of 2

verb

ˈthril 

thrilled; thrilling; thrills

1

transitive : to cause (someone) to experience a strong feeling of enjoyable excitement

The news thrilled him.

a performance that thrilled the crowd

It's just one of the 35 breathtaking stunts the 47-year-old daredevil pilot uses to thrill spectators at airshows across the country.

—Jean Bryant

see also thrilled, thrilling

2

intransitive : to experience a surge of excitement and pleasure

They thrilled to the sound of his voice.

She remembers that her father thrilled to see his daughter's name in print …

—David Ansen

From the beginning, Americans thrilled to the Hubble's potential to do dramatic science, to take us intellectually where no one has gone before.

—Chet Raymo

Kit thrilled at the sight of the familiar red coats.

—Elizabeth George Speare

3

intransitive, chiefly literary

a

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

… a faint cold fear thrills through my veins …

—William Shakespeare

b

: tremble entry 1, vibrate

… the very rocks seem to thrill with life.

—John Muir

thrill

2 of 2

noun

plural thrills

1

a

: a feeling of great excitement or happiness

The thrill isn't gone from our marriage after all this time.

the thrill of discovery/victory

"The most fun thing I've done so far," [Dorothy] Parke reports, "is put my foot through a window. It was only breakaway glass; but it was my first stunt, and it gave me such a thrill."

—Paul Francis

b

: a tingling of or as if of the nerves produced by a sudden emotional reaction

a thrill of horror

a thrill of pride/pleasure/anticipation

Harry felt a thrill of dread: He was about to pay for what had just happened, he was sure of it.

—J. K. Rowling

2

: a very exciting or enjoyable event or experience

What a thrill it was to see the Queen!

a movie with a lot of thrills and chills [=exciting and frightening parts]

the thrills and spills of skateboarding

He had always fancied himself as having a fine voice, and now to hear it from his wife's own lips was a real thrill.

—E. B. White

Synonyms

Verb

• charge
• electrify
• excite
• exhilarate
• galvanize
• intoxicate
• pump up
• titillate
• turn on

Noun

• bang
• boot
• charge
• exhilaration
• frisson
• jollies
• kick
• rush
• titillation
• wallop

Examples of thrill in a Sentence

Verb

Circus performers still thrill audiences today.

I was thrilled by their decision.

Noun

everyone gets a real thrill out of the Independence Day fireworks

Recent Examples on the Web

Verb

And that authenticity shows on screen, with a bounty of classic cars and thrilling racing sequences. —James Mercadante, EW.com, 20 May 2025

Ward, incidentally, was thrilled that the Titans signed his former UM teammate, receiver Xavier Restrepo, as an undrafted free agent. —Barry Jackson, Miami Herald, 19 May 2025

Noun

To the public, Franks’ death appeared to have been orchestrated for money and for thrill. —Kori Rumore, Chicago Tribune, 21 May 2025

To cut us off from the thrill of crossing borders and soaring over distant landscapes would deny us a fundamental pleasure of moviegoing. —Justin Chang, New Yorker, 21 May 2025

Word History

Etymology

Verb

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

First Known Use

Verb

1599, in the meaning defined at sense 3a

Noun

circa 1680, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Phrases Containing thrill

• cheap thrill
• thrill of someone's life
• thrill ride

Rhymes for thrill

• bill
• brill
• chill
• drill
• fil
• fill
• frill
• gill
• grill
• grille
• jill
• kill

Kids Definition

thrill

1 of 2 verb

ˈthril

1

: to experience or cause to experience a sudden strong feeling of excitement

the news thrilled him

2

: vibrate sense 2, tremble

a voice thrilling with emotion

thrill

2 of 2 noun

1

a

: a sudden strong emotion often accompanied by a tingling sensation

gets a thrill of excitement from riding the roller coaster

felt a thrill of fear

b

: something that thrills

seeing my picture in the newspaper was a thrill

2

: vibration sense 1b

Etymology

Verb

Middle English thirlen, thrillen "to pierce," from Old English thyrlian (same meaning) from thyrel "a hole," from thurh "through" — related to nostril, thorough, through

Word Origin

Today when we speak of being thrilled, we are referring to a very pleasing experience. But it was not always so. The Old English word thyrlian, which gave us thrill, meant "to pierce" as with an arrow or spear. The Old English word came from an earlier word thyrel, meaning "hole." Thyrel has also given us the last half of the word nostril, which literally means "nose hole." During the Middle English period the verb thyrlian became thirlen and continued to mean "to pierce." It also was the basis of the new verb thrillen, meaning "to penetrate." Then a connection was made between the physical sensation of being pierced and the emotional feeling of being suddenly and sharply excited. A new sense was born, which became the chief meaning of our thrill.

Medical Definition

thrill

noun

ˈthril 

: an abnormal fine tremor or vibration in the respiratory or circulatory systems felt on palpation

a continuous systolic and diastolic murmur, frequently associated with a thrill

—R. L. Cecil & R. F. Loeb