petrifying

verb

Definition of petrifyingnext
present participle of petrify
as in undermining
to deprive of emotional or intellectual vitality groupthink and peer pressure have so petrified the thinking of the company's top brass that they haven't produced an innovative product in years

Synonyms & Similar Words

Relevance

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of Synonyms for petrifying
  1. undermining
  2. exhausting
  3. draining
  4. weakening
  5. enervating
  6. wearing
  7. deadening
  8. desiccating
Verb
  • Careless language can transform guidance into judgment, or urgency into panic, undermining psychological safety.
    — Cheryl Robinson, Forbes.com, 2 Aug. 2026
  • Undermining trust By introducing an AI image generator as a Google Earth feature, Google risked undermining public trust in Google Earth as a reliable reference for providing authentic imagery of the real world, Ess said.
    — Jeremy Hsu, ArsTechnica, 31 July 2026
Definition of undermining
Verb
  • The ruling involves 16 men's basketball players who sued the NCAA in Cobb County Superior Court in July after exhausting four seasons of college eligibility.
    — Zachary Bynum, CBS News, 7 Aug. 2026
  • Countless veterans whom Perry had gotten to know had experienced similarly stark recoveries after exhausting conventional treatments for brain injuries and trauma, and turning to ibogaine.
    — Michelle Lhooq, New Yorker, 7 Aug. 2026
Definition of exhausting
Verb
  • Plant it in loose, fast-draining soil mixed with perlite, pumice, or orchid bark, or a combination of all, to keep the roots from rotting.
    — Karen Brewer Grossman, Southern Living, 6 Aug. 2026
  • Reserve about 1 cup of the starchy pasta water before draining.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 6 Aug. 2026
Definition of draining
Verb
  • But the horrible jobs data suggests the central bank may have to think about weakening consumer spending as well.
    — Sarah Min, CNBC, 7 Aug. 2026
  • The lawsuit comes just after Missourians overwhelmingly voted against weakening the initiative petition process.
    — Jack Harvel, Kansas City Star, 6 Aug. 2026
Definition of weakening
Verb
  • Campbell, the North Carolina folk singer, describes an enervating process marked by back-and-forth exchanges and lots of waiting.
    — Jon Blistein, Rolling Stone, 25 Mar. 2026
  • Jenny deflected me with enervating ease.
    — Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 13 Mar. 2026
Definition of enervating
Verb
  • The warning was to never wash her hands while wearing the ring, because the eye could wash away.
    — Jacqui Palumbo, CNN Money, 3 Aug. 2026
  • During the video, a person wearing a gorilla suit walked directly through the scene, stopped, beat their chest, and walked away.
    — Dr. Diane Hamilton, Forbes.com, 3 Aug. 2026
Definition of wearing
Verb
  • Sam Lambert laid down a safety squeeze, deadening the ball in front of the plate and scoring Balls to trim the lead to 3-1.
    — Dave Montrose, The Orlando Sentinel, 16 May 2026
  • Another suggestion was requiring special sound-deadening balls, currently available, that lower the decibel levels considerably.
    — John Ramos, CBS News, 16 Mar. 2026
Definition of deadening
Verb
  • Suddenly, pest populations are large enough to make a meaningful impact, and one too many afternoons of 100+ degree weather have begun desiccating leaves.
    — Anthony Reardon, Kansas City Star, 2 Aug. 2026
  • Improving safety in the field Key innovations for the new tissue include the ability to hold water at room temperature for months on end without desiccating or needing refridgeration.
    — Christopher McFadden, Interesting Engineering, 25 July 2026
Definition of desiccating
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.

Browse Nearby Words

petrify
petrifying
pets
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Petrifying.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/petrifying. Accessed 9 Aug. 2026.

Copy Citation

More from Merriam-Webster on petrifying

Nglish: Translation of petrifying for Spanish Speakers

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

More from Merriam-Webster

Word of the Day

Listen to the pronunciation of anecdote

See Definitions and Examples »

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

7 Pairs of Commonly Confused Words

Merriam-Webster’s Great Big List of Words You Love to Hate

Is it 'nerve-racking' or 'nerve-wracking'?

'Sneaked' or 'Snuck': Which is correct?

Why does English have so many silent letters?
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

The Longest Long Words List

It's a Scorcher! Words for the Summer Heat

14 Phobias You Probably Haven't Heard Of

The Words of the Week - Aug. 7

How long is a jiffy?
See More

Popular

See More

7 Pairs of Commonly Confused Words

The Longest Long Words List

It's a Scorcher! Words for the Summer Heat
See More

Games & Quizzes

See All
Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.
Quordle Can you solve 4 words at once?
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.
Blossom Pick the best words!
Play Missing Letter: a crossword with a twist. Each of the 25 puzzle words start with a different letter of the alphabet. Which letter is missing?
The Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
fridge-magnet-letters
Drop a Letter Quiz August 2026 Drop a letter from a word to make a totally diffe...
See All