thrilling
Americanadjective
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producing sudden, strong, and deep emotion or excitement.
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producing a tremor, as by chilling.
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vibrating; trembling; quivering.
adjective
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very exciting or stimulating
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vibrating or trembling
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Etymology
Origin of thrilling
Explanation
When something is thrilling, it makes you feel excited or exhilarated. Roller coasters are thrilling for some people—other people just find them nauseating. If your heart is beating fast and you feel absolutely elated, something thrilling is happening. Some of us find it thrilling to speak in front of a crowd or to dive into a cold lake. It's also thrilling to see your favorite movie star in person or to get a poem published in a magazine. The adjective thrilling comes from the verb thrill, which originally meant "pierce," and later "give a shivering excitement" or "pierce with emotion."
Vocabulary lists containing thrilling
List 1
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Amazing, List 1
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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.
Thrilling and coronary-inducing - exactly as it should be.
From BBC • Jul. 26, 2025
Thrilling, but also cortisol-spiking; the sense of being trapped like animals in a zoo is intensified by an obsidian two-way mirror on Wilson Chin’s spartan set.
From New York Times • Feb. 1, 2024
Thrilling as it was to experience “Barbenheimer,” we can be assured that the studios will learn all the wrong lessons from it.
From Los Angeles Times • Nov. 22, 2023
Thrilling in theory, but nobody seemed to want to win on Sunday.
From Seattle Times • May 19, 2022
Or else youre befuddled with too many Thrilling Wonder Scientifictions.
From Greener Than You Think by Moore, Ward
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.
