troubling

adjective

trou·​bling ˈtrə-b(ə-)liŋ 

: causing feelings of worry or anxiety

a troubling news report

It's not just trauma survivors who may be distracted or derailed by shocking or troubling material …

—Angus Johnston

troublingly adverb

Synonyms

• disturbing
• unsettling
• frightening

Examples of troubling in a Sentence

the most troubling sign of all is that he's stopped returning my phone calls

Recent Examples on the Web

There’s a troubling cynicism at work here, in which many alt-travel influencers are following the rightward shift of their young male audiences and creating content to placate them. —T. M. Brown, New Yorker, 15 Oct. 2025

Statistical visualizations by data journalist Miriam Quick and senior graphics editor Jen Christiansen illustrate this troubling trend and expose the stark disparities in care. —Jeanna Bryner, Scientific American, 14 Oct. 2025

Still, the troubling symptoms didn’t disappear. —Jordan Greene, PEOPLE, 14 Oct. 2025

For the large contingent of RV dwellers who fled Columbus Park before the summer’s large-scale encampment sweep and settled at VTA’s Almaden parking lot, another troubling deadline is looming. —Devan Patel, Mercury News, 13 Oct. 2025

Word History

First Known Use

14th century, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for troubling

• bubbling
• doubling
• redoubling