exhilarating
adjective
ex·hil·a·rat·ing
ig-ˈzi-lə-ˌrā-tiŋ 
: causing strong feelings of happy excitement and elation : thrilling
an exhilarating experience
… an exhilarating ride that allows participants to catch an aerial view like they've never seen before.—
Kathryn M. Roy
Kathryn M. Roy… I would like to convey the sense of flight as it was almost at the very beginning of itself, when everything about it was miraculous and dangerous and exhilarating.—James Dickey
James Dickey… an exhilarating career full of deals sealed at three-martini lunches.—Andrea Cooper
Andrea CooperExamples of exhilarating in a Sentence
no recording can capture the exhilarating feeling of being at a live rock concert
Recent Examples on the Web
This may be one of the low points in UConn’s March Madness History, though it’ll always be remembered as one of the most exhilarating upsets in the history of the tournament.
—Kels Dayton, Hartford Courant, 26 Mar. 2026
Dappled forests, challenging grades, and an exhilarating final scramble along The Spine, a rocky and narrow route to the summit, will leave you breathless.
—Madison Chapman, Outside, 25 Mar. 2026
That loss in Game 5 of the American League Division Series — a game that lasted 298 minutes, featured 15 pitchers, 22 runners left on base and too many twists and turns to count — marked the end of an exhausting, exhilarating stretch that took the team to the brink and back.
—Cody Stavenhagen, New York Times, 25 Mar. 2026
At tempos both exhilarating and more relaxed, the music was always going somewhere, with purpose and strategy.
—Scott Cantrell, Dallas Morning News, 22 Mar. 2026
See All Example Sentences for exhilarating
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Kels Dayton, Hartford Courant, 26 Mar. 2026
Dappled forests, challenging grades, and an exhilarating final scramble along The Spine, a rocky and narrow route to the summit, will leave you breathless.
—Madison Chapman, Outside, 25 Mar. 2026
That loss in Game 5 of the American League Division Series — a game that lasted 298 minutes, featured 15 pitchers, 22 runners left on base and too many twists and turns to count — marked the end of an exhausting, exhilarating stretch that took the team to the brink and back.
—Cody Stavenhagen, New York Times, 25 Mar. 2026
At tempos both exhilarating and more relaxed, the music was always going somewhere, with purpose and strategy.
—Scott Cantrell, Dallas Morning News, 22 Mar. 2026
See All Example Sentences for exhilarating
Cite this Entry
“Exhilarating.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/exhilarating. Accessed 31 Mar. 2026.
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