appealing
Americanadjective
adjective
Other Word Forms
- appealingly adverb
- appealingness noun
- nonappealing adjective
- nonappealingly adverb
- nonappealingness noun
- quasi-appealing adjective
- quasi-appealingly adverb
- unappealing adjective
- unappealingly adverb
Etymology
Origin of appealing
First recorded in 1400–50; late Middle English; appeal + -ing 2
Explanation
The adjective appealing describes someone who is able to attract interest or is easy to like. For example, your easy sense of humor and way of making people feel comfortable make you appealing to friends old and new. If you are appealing, people want to be around you. It might be that you are really nice, or a good listener, not to mention have good looks. Actors who are appealing tend to get a lot of parts because filmmakers know audiences will flock to see them, just as an appealing description of a dish on a menu will lead more people to order it. This something is appealing, it is — or will be — popular.
Vocabulary lists containing appealing
Call of Beauty: Synonyms for "Beautiful"
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Workshop 1, Part 2
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Freakonomics
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Bini’s music is broadly appealing, undeniably lovestruck and hooky.
From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 9, 2026
Its persuasive power seems more aimed at appealing to the sensibilities of the justices who, one could assume, wouldn’t want to hand over their papers, more than a real legal argument.
From Slate • Apr. 9, 2026
Kempczinski is trying to thread a narrow needle in appealing to both lower-income buyers struggling in an economy that no longer feels affordable and upper-income customers still spending and wanting elevated fare.
From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 8, 2026
To find something more appealing to income investors, we looked for stocks with higher yields where managers were still committed to increasing annual payouts.
From Barron's • Apr. 8, 2026
I strummed a minor chord that sounded even less appealing.
From "The Name of the Wind" by Patrick Rothfuss
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
