as in thriller
something (as a close contest) that induces much suspense as to its outcome
since they had been dating for five years, her answer to his proposal wasn't exactly a hair-raiser
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Recent Examples of hair-raiser
And the Halloween-eve hair-raiser adds a cackling skeleton to a horror arcade of ghoulish news for EVs.
—
Shawn Tully, Fortune, 30 Oct. 2023
Shawn Tully, Fortune, 30 Oct. 2023
Recent Examples of Synonyms for hair-raiser
thriller
Noun
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In this thriller, Tessa Thompson plays TV reporter Anna Andrews, who returns to her small Georgia hometown to report on a string of homicides being investigated by her estranged husband, Detective Jack Harper (Jon Bernthal).—
Clare Mulroy,
USA Today,
24 Jan. 2026
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While Chris Pratt’s new sci-fi thriller, Mercy, is not shaping up to do terribly well at the box office, reviews are starting to come in during its opening weekend from both critics and fans.—
Paul Tassi,
Forbes.com,
24 Jan. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Hair-raiser.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/hair-raiser. Accessed 31 Jan. 2026.
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