scarifying

verb

present participle of scarify
as in frightening
to strike with fear that foolish woman would be scarified by a mouse

Synonyms & Similar Words

Relevance

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of Synonyms for scarifying
  1. frightening
  2. scaring
  3. terrifying
  4. startling
Verb
  • Powell tried to open the stall door, and then began fondling himself, frightening the 11-year-old, who tried to leave, but Powell blocked him from getting out.
    — Todd Feurer, CBS News, 6 June 2026
  • This war has been a disaster for them, frightening away foreign investors, tourists and talent and burdening them with a future of huge new defense bills to deter Iran after the United States is gone.
    — Thomas L. Friedman, Mercury News, 15 May 2026
Definition of frightening
Verb
  • Maybe two or three groups of hoaxers out there at once, bumping into each other in the dark and scaring the scales off one another.
    — Star-Telegram staff, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 10 July 2026
  • There are multiple songs that could be (and were) covered by the Jackson 5 without scaring the teenyboppers, but Stone’s musical and lyrical depth is right there in the band’s most accessible album.
    — Al Shipley, SPIN, 7 July 2026
Definition of scaring
Verb
  • These get forwarded across the internet, and soon masses of young people are surging into an urban plaza or park, often terrifying any adult who happens to be nearby.
    — Robert F. Worth, The Atlantic, 10 July 2026
  • Grand Canyon The Grand Canyon is breathtaking and also terrifying with a 4-year-old along.
    — Sarah D. Wire, USA Today, 17 May 2026
Definition of terrifying
Verb
  • Some cyclists sped by pretty quickly, startling us and our dog.
    — Maura Fox, San Diego Union-Tribune, 27 Mar. 2026
  • Hauge called that startling, given that court filing fees alone cost just as much.
    — Frederick Melo, Twin Cities, 4 Jan. 2026
Definition of startling
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

scarify
scarifying
scariness
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Scarifying.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/scarifying. Accessed 15 Jul. 2026.

Copy Citation

More from Merriam-Webster on scarifying

Nglish: Translation of scarifying 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!

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

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

Is that lie 'bald-faced' or 'bold-faced'?

'A' or 'an'? What about before 'h'? An Indefinite Article Guide

Why is '-ed' sometimes pronounced at the end of a word?

Commonly Misspelled Words
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

14 Phobias You Probably Haven't Heard Of

It's a Scorcher! Words for the Summer Heat

The Longest Long Words List

Ten Words Ending with a Silent ‘T’

The Words of the Week - Jul 10
See More

Popular

See More

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

14 Phobias You Probably Haven't Heard Of

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
banana-mirrored
Contradictory Words Quiz Pick out which word means one thing…and the opp...
See All