Synonyms of horrifying

horrifying 1 of 2

adjective

1

as in terrifying

causing fear

couldn't sleep after reading a horrifying tale of evil

a horrifying scream brought people running from all directions to see what was wrong

Synonyms & Similar Words

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

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

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

2

as in gruesome

extremely disturbing or repellent

the horrifying sight of a rat running through the restaurant's kitchen

Synonyms & Similar Words

• gruesome
• horrific
• shocking
• horrible
• nightmare
• frightening
• terrible
• terrifying
• terrific
• awful
• scary
• dreadful
• hideous
• appalling
• nightmarish
• grisly
• sickening
• macabre
• horrid
• ghastly
• disgusting
• horrendous
• frightful
• monstrous
• atrocious
• lurid
• alarming
• fearful
• dire
• ugly
• grotesque
• revolting
• obscene
• repulsive
• formidable
• loathsome
• offensive
• deplorable
• direful
• abhorrent
• heinous
• repugnant
• unspeakable
• gut-wrenching
• intimidating
• fearsome
• abominable
• disagreeable
• forbidding
• obnoxious
• odious
• evil
• distasteful
• vile
• bloodcurdling
• hair-raising
• nauseating
• heart-stopping
• redoubtable
• noxious
• unsightly
• noisome
• foul

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• pleasant
• attractive
• delightful
• delicious
• appealing
• enjoyable
• welcome
• satisfying
• pleasurable
• agreeable
• enticing
• pleasing
• delectable
• inviting
• comforting
• soothing
• cheering

horrifying

2 of 2

verb

present participle of horrify

as in frightening

to strike with fear

the old black-and-white psychological thriller still horrifies audiences

Synonyms & Similar Words

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

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

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

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of horrifying

Adjective

Yes, the scene is intimate, but the nature of the show requires it to also be horrifying and comedic. — Megan Vick, Los Angeles Times, 12 Aug. 2026

No franchise on this list is more indebted to a single auteur (Wes Craven) and a single actor (Robert Englund), who turned the saga of Freddy Krueger into something uniquely horrifying. — Christian Zilko, IndieWire, 8 Aug. 2026

Part woozy fever dream, part vicious action picture, the movie pivots on a prescient and horrifying warning about the ease with which humanity might annihilate itself. — Declan Gallagher, Entertainment Weekly, 7 Aug. 2026

The byproduct of eating the dessert is a little more horrifying than your typical childhood sugar rush. — Ralphie Aversa, USA Today, 6 Aug. 2026

How did Cubs manager Craig Counsell react to the horrifying news that Skubal was now a Dodger? — Paul Sullivan, Chicago Tribune, 3 Aug. 2026

And despite his horrifying physical decline, the King never lost his voice. — Andy Greene, Rolling Stone, 1 Aug. 2026

But for experts and analysts who rely on Google's imagery to verify breaking news and atrocities in hard-to-reach parts of the world, the potential to create deepfake satellite imagery at the click of a button was horrifying. — Geoff Brumfiel, NPR, 31 July 2026

There’s even a homage to Quint’s (Shaw) horrifying tale about maneaters on the high seas. — Randy Myers, Mercury News, 30 July 2026

Verb

The complications are horrifying doctors. — Alexandra Frost, USA Today, 24 June 2026

Following her rescue, horrifying details of what happened to Jaycee began to emerge. — Lynsey Eidell, PEOPLE, 10 June 2026

In the years since Boogie Nights, Leo has made an unlikely hit out of The Man in the Iron Mask, then took the role of Patrick Bateman in American Psycho, showing off his range and turning that surreal and often horrifying movie into another $100 million feather in his cap. — Joe Reid, Vulture, 13 Mar. 2026

The visage, created by Universal Studio’s then-lead makeup artist Jack Pierce for the 1931 film, was horrifying enough that its influence endured for almost 100 years. — Leah Dolan, CNN Money, 17 Oct. 2025

No special effects were required to trigger Curry's stark drift from amiability to horrifying emptiness. — Randall Colburn, Entertainment Weekly, 6 Oct. 2025

Television cameras captured the ensuing violence, horrifying much of the nation. — Time, 12 Sep. 2025

The grisly murder stayed a local story until horrifying CCTV footage of the incident started making the rounds on social media last weekend. — Jesus Mesa, MSNBC Newsweek, 11 Sep. 2025

Mainstream Israeli media has increasingly spotlighted the dire starvation crisis in Gaza after months of Israel’s near-total aid blockade, horrifying some Israelis and triggering protests. — Kristina Karisch, The Hill, 18 Aug. 2025