1
as in terrifying
causing fear
a frightful sound emanated from somewhere deep within the forest
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in gruesome
extremely disturbing or repellent
I couldn't listen to the frightful details of the murder trial
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
3
as in intense
extreme in degree, power, or effect
flew into a frightful fit of rage
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of frightful
Moments after the game begins, a frightful hurricane takes young Hazel Flood’s home.
—
Harold Goldberg, New York Times, 8 Apr. 2025
Needless to say, those of us who remember 1987 are trembling, and were expecting a frightful jobs report.
—Eli Amdur, Forbes.com, 4 Apr. 2025
Looking up at the sky and seeing the moon turn red can be a frightful but also intriguing sight.
—Monica Cull, Discover Magazine, 4 Mar. 2025
The weather outside may still be frightful, but Joanna Gaines is already ushering in major spring vibes.
—Averi Baudler, People.com, 26 Feb. 2025
See All Example Sentences for frightful
Harold Goldberg, New York Times, 8 Apr. 2025
Needless to say, those of us who remember 1987 are trembling, and were expecting a frightful jobs report.
—Eli Amdur, Forbes.com, 4 Apr. 2025
Looking up at the sky and seeing the moon turn red can be a frightful but also intriguing sight.
—Monica Cull, Discover Magazine, 4 Mar. 2025
The weather outside may still be frightful, but Joanna Gaines is already ushering in major spring vibes.
—Averi Baudler, People.com, 26 Feb. 2025
See All Example Sentences for frightful
Recent Examples of Synonyms for frightful
Adjective
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More: Ukraine drone attack shows familiar-looking drones can be terrifying weapons How does the Pentagon, which spends nearly a trillion dollars a year on defense, have such a vulnerability?—
Tom Vanden Brook,
USA Today,
8 June 2025
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An apocalyptic wasteland ruled by savage bands of outlaws or a horny computer dork's bedroom — which is more terrifying?—
Jordan Hoffman,
EW.com,
6 June 2025
Adjective
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But Trump and Epstein’s association has been out in the open for nearly a quarter century; nineties-era footage of the gruesome twosome together at Mar-a-Lago, leering at a group of young cheerleaders, has been circulating since at least 2019.—
Jessica Winter,
New Yorker,
6 June 2025
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Six decades later, Hamas would engage in a gruesome competition with Fatah to outdo one another with terrorist attacks during the 1990s and early 2000s.—
Sean Durns,
The Washington Examiner,
6 June 2025
Adjective
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Residents of Maoming, China were treated to a celestial light show earlier this week when a surprise fireball burst to life overhead, illuminating the city before disappearing in an intense flare of light.—
Anthony Wood,
Space.com,
31 May 2025
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The auto-revive for solo players on Night Lords is to combat the intense difficulties of those fights where a single wrong move can be death.—
Paul Tassi,
Forbes.com,
31 May 2025
Adjective
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Sinha’s strategic interventions have substantially scaled up businesses, powering a formidable sales pipeline by assisting the company in landing enterprise-level engagements.—
Daniel Fusch,
USA Today,
3 June 2025
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Everything points to the fact that Karolína’s exceptional talent has caught the attention of the formidable and much admired choirmaster.—
Leo Barraclough,
Variety,
3 June 2025
Adjective
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This is what Qasem Hassan had feared from the start—that the horrific violence inflicted on Israelis on October 7th would be used to justify a war without limits, dehumanizing all Palestinians.—
Eyal Press,
New Yorker,
9 June 2025
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That this horrific upheaval comes care of Lucy’s work is the real kicker.—
Kate Erbland,
IndieWire,
9 June 2025
Adjective
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Ware picked up all the cases while on intensive supervised release after serving three years and three months for aiding and abetting first-degree robbery out of Hennepin County.—
Nick Ferraro,
Twin Cities,
6 June 2025
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Russia used a Tu-160 in intensive overnight missile and drone strikes across Ukraine, Kyiv's air force said on Friday.—
Ellie Cook,
MSNBC Newsweek,
6 June 2025
Adjective
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The ensuing action is gory and frightening — and even Wong got a little spooked by Hawkins.—
Eric Andersson,
People.com,
31 May 2025
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This is incredibly damaging to career prospects and, given how little knowledge exists in mainstream medical and occupational health circles, can feel confusing and frightening for those who don’t know where to turn for advice.—
Nancy Doyle,
Forbes.com,
30 May 2025
Adjective
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Kids these days have attention spans crushed under the terrible weight of TikTok and Instgram.—
Erik Kain,
Forbes.com,
3 June 2025
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My heart goes out to the victims of this terrible tragedy, and the Great People of Boulder, Colorado!—
Dan Mangan,
CNBC,
2 June 2025
Cite this Entry
“Frightful.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/frightful. Accessed 12 Jun. 2025.
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