as in terrifying
causing fear
a truly frightening movie
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
as in scaring
to strike with fear
around the campfire the campers tried to frighten one another with ghostly legends and grisly tales
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of frightening
Fran Hoepfner, Vulture, 12 June 2025
The film’s most frightening scene is a fight between Claire and her mom, when the manipulative young woman tries every tactic imaginable to extort money from Kate, from tearing out her hair to kidnapping Cooper.
—Peter Debruge, Variety, 7 June 2025
There’s a reason, Courtney knows, why the sharks here look so frightening.
—Stephen Schaefer, Boston Herald, 5 June 2025
How to check food labels for allergies Howard's story is frightening and not entirely uncommon.
—Adrianna Rodriguez, USA Today, 12 June 2025
See All Example Sentences for frightening
Adjective
His eagerness to dive into worlds of monsters and myth with an eye for gory reality has made his work thus far much more pleasurable than actually frightening (though there are plenty of scares as well).
—Fran Hoepfner, Vulture, 12 June 2025
The film’s most frightening scene is a fight between Claire and her mom, when the manipulative young woman tries every tactic imaginable to extort money from Kate, from tearing out her hair to kidnapping Cooper.
—Peter Debruge, Variety, 7 June 2025
There’s a reason, Courtney knows, why the sharks here look so frightening.
—Stephen Schaefer, Boston Herald, 5 June 2025
How to check food labels for allergies Howard's story is frightening and not entirely uncommon.
—Adrianna Rodriguez, USA Today, 12 June 2025
See All Example Sentences for frightening
Recent Examples of Synonyms for frightening
Adjective
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When the body of a young man is found eerily staged in the idyllic Scottish wilderness, detective Monica Kennedy fears this is just the beginning of a terrifying campaign that will strike the heart of a rural community.—
Lily Ford,
HollywoodReporter,
1 July 2025
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The terrifying moment that passengers were made to put on oxygen masks was captured on video.—
Latoya Gayle,
People.com,
1 July 2025
Adjective
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This was in the days when only lunatics or scary white punks had shaved heads.—
Hilton Als,
New Yorker,
30 June 2025
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The blend of physical locations with sets and digital imagery is seamless and the CG work on the creatures is first-rate, notably so in the scary climactic stretch when the lumbering D. Rex joins the fray.—
David Rooney,
HollywoodReporter,
30 June 2025
Adjective
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But Martone is one of the very best prospects in this draft and gives the Flyers size, high-end skill (he’s got plus traits as a shooter, handler and playmaker), and a formidable one-two punch at right wing with Matvei Michkov.—
Scott Wheeler,
New York Times,
27 June 2025
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The actress portrayed formidable sensei Kim Da-Eun on the Netflix series that ended in February after six seasons.—
Raechal Shewfelt,
EW.com,
26 June 2025
Verb
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Jung-bae wound up in a room of three, with Player 001 and some rando — but Player 001 choked the stranger to death in time to reduce their head count, shocking Jung-bae more than a bit.—
Matt Webb Mitovich,
TVLine,
26 Dec. 2024
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Fox News Digital obtained shocking audio between Cyrus and his estranged wife where the country crooner is heard berating his Australian ex and using profane language.—
Ashley Hume,
Fox News,
26 Dec. 2024
Adjective
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To be able to say that so many writers have been meaningful to you is not a horrible thing.—
John Warner,
Chicago Tribune,
28 June 2025
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If Flagg develops into the human triple double who leads the team to the Western Conference Finals and NBA Finals in his first six years, the trade can be called not a horrible deal.—
Mac Engel,
Fort Worth Star-Telegram,
26 June 2025
Adjective
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Rarely great, and consistently cringey in that NHL way we’re used to by now, but rarely terrible.—
Sean McIndoe,
New York Times,
28 June 2025
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Even the ones that aren’t strictly evil in the biblical sense are often prone to doing terrible things.—
Erik Kain,
Forbes.com,
27 June 2025
Adjective
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The foundations themselves are also focused on education to make clinical trials less intimidating.—
Alexis Kayser,
MSNBC Newsweek,
28 June 2025
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Catcher Caden Bodine, a top-round prospect, leads Coastal Carolina’s balanced and intimidating lineup.—
Steven Louis Goldstein,
New York Times,
21 June 2025
Cite this Entry
“Frightening.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/frightening. Accessed 7 Jul. 2025.
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