thrilling

adjective

thrill·​ing ˈthri-liŋ 

: causing a feeling of great excitement or happiness

a thrilling discovery

a thrilling performance

… flashes into the end zone to give the Rams the winning touchdown in the most thrilling Super Bowl finish ever.

—Rick Reilly

thrillingly

ˈthri-liŋ-lē 

adverb

Who, in fact, are the good guys and who are the bad guys in the dramas that unfold here so thrillingly?

—Marie Winn

… this is a powerful and thrillingly strange movie …

—Terrence Rafferty

Synonyms

• breathtaking
• charged
• electric
• electrifying
• exciting
• exhilarating
• exhilarative
• galvanic
• galvanizing
• hair-raising
• heart-stopping
• inspiring
• intoxicating
• kicky
• mind-bending
• mind-blowing
• mind-boggling
• rip-roaring
• rousing
• stimulating
• stirring

Examples of thrilling in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

The movie’s cat wrangler, Jo Vaughan (who also worked on The Marvels), says Day One might be the finest cat performance she’s ever seen in film due to Frodo’s relationship with the story’s human characters, combined with some thrilling action sequences. —James Hibberd, The Hollywood Reporter, 12 Apr. 2024

My bear-spotting safari with Wild Spain Travel in May 2022 was undoubtedly one of my life's most thrilling travel experiences. —Paul Richardson, Condé Nast Traveler, 9 Apr. 2024

Photo: Carole Bethuel WATCH How Millie Bobby Brown Gets Ready for Date Night Aside from being a once-in-a-generation Gallic beauty with a name full of creamy vowels, Seydoux has become one of the most thrilling stars of the past decade, since her breakout in 2013’s Blue Is the Warmest Color. —Lisa Wong MacAbasco, Vogue, 5 Apr. 2024

Yet this work succeeds as a thrilling and ambitious blueprint for what might be an essential way to experience horror storytelling. —William Earl, Variety, 4 Apr. 2024

Consumers can expect a thrilling ride with unprecedented levels of personalization, a strong commitment to sustainability and a holistic approach to well-being, all thanks to the transformative capabilities of AI. —Sampo Parkkinen, Forbes, 28 Mar. 2024

The film’s climax is perhaps the most thrilling prison break in cinema history. —Wesley Stenzel, EW.com, 27 Mar. 2024

The plan was brilliant: Flyer set up rental shops at train stations, while Hasler mapped out the most thrilling point-to-points. —Tim Neville, Travel + Leisure, 1 Apr. 2024

Since both of the main characters are in constant danger of blowing their cover, The Departed is one of the most thrilling films in Scorsese’s filmography. —Wesley Stenzel, EW.com, 27 Mar. 2024

Word History

First Known Use

1768, in the meaning defined above