BLOODCURDLING Synonyms: 81 Similar and Opposite Words

bloodcurdling

adjective

Definition of bloodcurdling

as in gruesome

causing great horror or fear We heard bloodcurdling stories about the war. bloodcurdling screams

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Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Recent Examples of bloodcurdling Bahm’s somewhat-frantic conversation with the dispatcher abruptly turned into bloodcurdling screams. — Sean Emery, Oc Register, 7 May 2026 India’s largest state, Uttar Pradesh, is run by Yogi Adityanath, a Hindu monk who founded an anti-Muslim militia and whose bloodcurdling rhetoric against Muslims once placed him beyond the pale of high office. — Sadanand Dhume, Foreign Affairs, 24 Aug. 2021 The sounds of more explosions could be heard deriving from the outside amid more seemingly bloodcurdling screams, yells, sirens and alarms. — Sean Lester Durham, The Root, 8 Apr. 2018 To me, a noose is merely a noose — not a bloodcurdling symbol of racist violence. — Kevin Riordan, Philly.com, 1 Nov. 2017

Recent Examples of Synonyms for bloodcurdling

Adjective

Multiple gruesome photos of the crime scene were exhibited on screen during the first day of the preliminary hearing Tuesday, showing a garbage bag with limbs inside, as well as Rivas’ bloody head and torso.

— Christine Pelisek, PEOPLE, 22 July 2026
Directed by James Watkins and written by Mike Flanagan and Hossein Amini, the film places one of the most gruesome villains from the DC universe front and center.

— Christian Zilko, IndieWire, 22 July 2026

Definition of gruesome

Adjective

Penned by Aguirre-Sacasa based on the Archie Comics characters, Afterlife with Archie turns the all-American town of Riverdale into a zombie-overrun apocalypse — where the only thing scarier than the undead is trying to survive your teenage years.

— Nellie Andreeva, Deadline, 20 July 2026
Scary allegations are not the whole story If voters listened to Trump’s speech without the benefits of fact-checkers or even Google, things sound really, really scary.

— Philip Elliott, Time, 17 July 2026

Definition of scary

Adjective

However, changing the Social Security formula to a means-testing base, and applying it immediately to all existing Social Security recipients, is a frightening idea.

— U T Readers, San Diego Union-Tribune, 20 July 2026
Panettiere's pregnancy was marked by a series of frightening health scares.

— Stephanie Nolasco, FOXNews.com, 20 July 2026

Definition of frightening

Adjective

The largest, the Koda Suite (named for Leo’s dog), which was once occupied by the Daunt family, is a terrific family option, with two rooms, two bathrooms, tons of space, and its own private pool entrance.

— Condé Nast, Condé Nast Traveler, 15 July 2026
What’s far more eloquent is the episode with the witch Circe (a terrific Samantha Morton), whose habit of tricking and transforming men into animals is rendered in evocatively physical, body-horror-esque imagery.

— Alison Willmore, Vulture, 15 July 2026

Definition of terrific

Adjective

Yet somehow, two decades later, the viciously antisemitic Vichy regime planted itself in power; a shocking betrayal by France of some of its most loyal and generous supporters, in a dehumanizing toxic swamp of suspicion, judgment, envy.

— Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 17 July 2026
As shocking as the scandal surrounding Terrion Arnold is, the 2024 first-round pick had not played that well, and the Lions could be better without him.

— Vic Tafur, New York Times, 17 July 2026

Definition of shocking

Browse Nearby Words

blood brothers

bloodcurdling

blooded

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“Bloodcurdling.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/bloodcurdling. Accessed 24 Jul. 2026.

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Synonyms of bloodcurdling

adjective

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