- present participle of haunt.
haunting
Americanadjective
noun
adjective
-
(of memories) poignant or persistent
-
poignantly sentimental; enchantingly or eerily evocative
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of haunting
Middle English word dating back to 1275–1325; see origin at haunt, -ing 2, -ing 1
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.
Walking through the forest, the scale of what happened is almost haunting.
From BBC ● Oct. 10, 2026
Yet the image of the male Viking warrior stubbornly lingers, drawing crowds while also haunting the galleries like a restless specter.
From Science Daily ● Sep. 23, 2026
The zombie nightmare haunting private-equity firms isn’t ending anytime soon, my colleagues Matt Wirz and Mark Maurer report.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 18, 2026
With a beveled chord progression and a haunting repetition of the name, it became perhaps her most requested song, and was covered by many, including the White Stripes, Candi Staton, Reba McEntire and Olivia Newton-John.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 25, 2026
The haunting notes didn’t resemble an organ, a piano, a fiddle, or any instrument of this world.
From "The Seven Wonders of Sassafras Springs" by Betty G. Birney
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Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
