UNNERVING Synonyms: 123 Similar and Opposite Words

unnerving 1 of 2

adjective

as in disturbing

marked by or causing agitation or uncomfortable feelings the unnerving news of yet another murder

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

unnerving

2 of 2

verb

present participle of unnerve

as in paralyzing

to deprive of courage or confidence the riding accident so unnerved me that for a while I was afraid to get back on a horse

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

as in discouraging

to lessen the courage or confidence of a figure skater can't afford to be unnerved by an occasional slipup

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Example Sentences

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.

Recent Examples of unnerving

Adjective

But the nightmarish realms of the Further retain their unnerving power, and some of the old-school ghost movie thrills are well done. — Bilge Ebiri, Vulture, 21 Aug. 2026 Matthew Robert Cooper’s unnerving ambient score bleeds into the relentless dink-dink-dink of the Jeep’s strobing hazard lights. — Amy Nicholson, Los Angeles Times, 19 Aug. 2026 The relentlessness of this worldwide bond market rout is unnerving, pushing yields to decently attractive levels. — Jim Cramer, CNBC, 18 Aug. 2026 The unnerving truth is that most of this content is not really intended for a human to read; it’s crafted for the AI models. — Amy Packard Berry, Forbes.com, 17 Aug. 2026 All in all, the audiovisual atmosphere teased here feels unnerving. — Georg Szalai, HollywoodReporter, 17 Aug. 2026 Advertisement Steury knew a veterinarian in Alabama who had an unnerving encounter. — Angela Haupt, Time, 12 Aug. 2026 For her sophomore film, de Araújo remains compelled to tell unnerving stories that are ripped from real-life events. — Kate Erbland, IndieWire, 11 Aug. 2026 The closing scene of the film reveals the subtly unnerving final result. — Sezin Devi Koehler, Entertainment Weekly, 6 Aug. 2026

Verb

OpenAI said quarter-on-quarter sales growth cooled to 18% while losses deepened, unnerving investors as the firm prepares for what is expected to be one of the biggest IPOs ever. — Jeronimo Gonzalez, semafor.com, 19 Aug. 2026 While SpaceX's satellite internet division, Starlink, remains the company's key revenue driver, the group's gigantic AI capex spend is unnerving investors, helping to drag the stock price lower in Wednesday's session. — Hugh Leask, CNBC, 5 Aug. 2026 His bet is that the same technology unnerving finance chiefs, artificial intelligence, is what finally drags that sector into the modern era. — Boaz Sobrado, Forbes.com, 1 Aug. 2026 Alan Greenspan, who led the Federal Reserve under four presidents, steering the economy through unprecedented growth but also unnerving crisis, has died. — Ted Johnson, Deadline, 22 June 2026 Two decades ago, Pratt’s unnerving talent for getting as much attention as possible secured him a spot on a TV show. — Louis Staples, The Atlantic, 1 June 2026 Still, Hollywood, and its significance to moviemaking, has a singular, unnerving allure on her. — Carlos Aguilar, Los Angeles Times, 6 May 2026 The president immediately began speaking more about buying or seizing Greenland, further unnerving NATO allies. — Jordan Blum, Fortune, 2 May 2026 The most recent of these was just two years ago, when eastern and central swathes of the United States experienced the path of totality, the phenomenon that casts daytime into eerie midnight blackness for unnerving lengths of time. — Mark Ellwood, Robb Report, 14 Apr. 2026

Recent Examples of Synonyms for unnerving

Adjective

The disturbing incident comes amidst a sharp increase in both felony and misdemeanor assaults in the subway system.

— Rocco Parascandola, New York Daily News, 19 Aug. 2026
The story follows a husband and wife who buy their dream ranch only to discover the land is alive with ancient spirits, and survival means submitting to increasingly disturbing rituals with each turn of the season.

— Borys Kit, HollywoodReporter, 18 Aug. 2026

Definition of disturbing

Verb

For some, these new measures promise to weed out AI use in the classroom, whether by discouraging students from relying on LLMs or equipping professors with a foolproof method of identifying its use.

— Christopher Rim, Forbes.com, 21 Aug. 2026
Some researchers also wondered whether therapeutic ideas about trauma and family dynamics could play a role in discouraging liberals from having kids.

— Olga Khazan, The Atlantic, 20 Aug. 2026

Definition of discouraging

Adjective

Security will remain in place at the schools, officials said, and counselors will be available for students who feel uneasy about attending classes.

— Sacbee.com, Sacbee.com, 20 Aug. 2026
But that blend of raucous laughs (OK, well, some raucous laughs, some mere attempts at them) and real world concerns makes for an uneasy watch, ping-ponging between moods and tones in unpredictable ways.

— Kate Erbland, IndieWire, 20 Aug. 2026

Definition of uneasy

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

But Algo’s hyper-logical, computerised process of consistently picking the favourites to win was undone in the second match of the day, with Ghana frustrating England in a 0-0 draw.

— The Athletic Soccer Experts, New York Times, 24 June 2026
The documentary’s contradiction is right there, enthralling us with the wild achievements Potter pulled off and frustrating us with his bombast, leading us to ponder whether, as The Dark Wizard suggests, either could exist without the other.

— Roxana Hadadi, Vulture, 7 May 2026

Definition of frustrating

Adjective

The film follows Niaz (Bakhtadze), a once-famous star of Georgian cinema who embarks on a bizarre and fatalistic odyssey of self-transformation, after an unsettling audition with a young female director looking to cast him in a minor part.

— Christopher Vourlias, Variety, 21 Aug. 2026
Learning from the doctor that your cholesterol levels are higher than recommended can be an unsettling wake-up call.

— Gavin Escott, USA Today, 20 Aug. 2026

Definition of unsettling

Browse Nearby Words

unnerves

unnerving

unneurotic

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“Unnerving.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/unnerving. Accessed 25 Aug. 2026.

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Synonyms of unnerving

adjective

verb

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