Synonyms of alarming

alarming 1 of 2

adjective

ə-ˈlär-miŋ 

as in terrifying

causing fear

an alarming rise in her fever, causing the doctor to fear the worst

Synonyms & Similar Words

• terrifying
• frightening
• scary
• formidable
• horrible
• terrible
• intimidating
• shocking
• startling
• horrifying
• dread
• fearful
• eerie
• dreadful
• troubling
• disturbing
• creepy
• dire
• ghastly
• frightful
• gruesome
• horrendous
• forbidding
• fearsome
• disconcerting
• spine-chilling
• threatening
• redoubtable
• unnerving
• trying
• discouraging
• direful
• hair-raising
• disquieting
• perturbing
• dismaying
• daunting
• demoralizing
• distressing
• weird
• hideous
• appalling
• grisly
• nightmarish
• macabre
• awful
• horrid
• monstrous
• bone-chilling
• atrocious

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• reassuring
• comforting
• soothing
• relaxing
• calming
• inviting
• consoling
• tranquilizing
• nonthreatening
• quieting
• lulling
• pacifying
• nonintimidating

alarming

2 of 2

verb

variants also alaruming

present participle of alarm

1

as in frightening

to strike with fear

I don't want to alarm you, but I think you should know there's a bear on your back porch

Synonyms & Similar Words

• frightening
• startling
• terrifying
• scaring
• shocking
• horrifying
• spooking
• panicking
• terrorizing
• shaking
• frighting
• scarifying
• appalling
• affrighting
• amazing
• worrying
• dismaying
• astounding
• distracting
• disturbing
• disconcerting
• distressing
• unsettling
• jolting
• giving one the creeps
• making one's flesh creep
• disquieting
• unnerving
• daunting
• dispiriting
• upsetting
• discomforting
• awing
• shaking up
• perturbing
• emasculating
• bowling over
• demoralizing
• chilling
• psyching (out)
• undoing
• flooring
• discomposing
• unmanning
• unstringing

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• reassuring
• comforting
• assuring
• soothing
• cheering
• consoling
• encouraging
• inspiring
• solacing
• heartening
• emboldening
• steeling

2

as in disturbing

to trouble the mind of; to make uneasy

alarmed at the skyrocketing cost of home heating fuel

Synonyms & Similar Words

• disturbing
• worrying
• concerning
• distracting
• bothering
• unsettling
• distressing
• upsetting
• dismaying
• angering
• disquieting
• haunting
• agitating
• discomforting
• annoying
• plaguing
• perturbing
• irritating
• confusing
• embarrassing
• unhinging
• ailing
• derailing
• undoing
• rattling
• exercising
• freaking (out)
• exasperating
• aggravating
• fussing
• bugging
• discouraging
• discomposing
• flurrying
• disconcerting
• frazzling
• vexing
• distempering
• weirding out
• harassing
• hagriding
• galling
• irking
• nettling
• jarring
• disheartening
• pestering
• mortifying
• discomfiting
• unnerving
• harrying
• riling
• chafing
• fretting
• confounding
• grating
• bedeviling
• piquing
• daunting
• dispiriting
• putting off
• putting out
• demoralizing
• peeving
• getting
• flustering
• chivying
• discountenancing
• shaking up
• abashing
• nonplussing
• fazing

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• soothing
• calming
• quieting
• composing
• settling
• alleviating
• allaying
• tranquilizing
• pacifying
• appeasing
• assuaging
• conciliating
• placating
• mollifying
• propitiating

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of alarming

Adjective

The Cubs — and specifically Dansby Swanson — keep driving in runs at an alarming rate. — Levi Weaver, New York Times, 2 July 2026

The planet’s oceans are at unprecedented temperatures for this time of year, breaking the all-time June record, according to new data, with alarming implications for global weather and marine life. — Laura Paddison, CNN Money, 1 July 2026

Verb

The institution has resisted placing it under glass or alarming it in order to allow visitors as unrestricted a viewing experience as possible. — News Desk, Artforum, 9 June 2026

The specific regulatory rollbacks Barr catalogs are alarming in their breadth. — Mayra Rodriguez Valladares, Forbes.com, 6 June 2026