- present participle of tantalize.
tantalizing
Americanadjective
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of tantalizing
Explanation
Something tantalizing is tempting: like a meal that smells amazing and makes you want to eat it. Tantalizing things are very appealing. When something is tantalizing, it makes you want it, even if it's totally out of reach. An exciting movie trailer could be tantalizing if it makes you want to see the movie. A little part of a song can be tantalizing if it tempts you to hear more. Smells — when they're good smells — can be very tantalizing. Just walking through a good restaurant, smelling and looking at the food, is a tantalizing experience.
Vocabulary lists containing tantalizing
The Giver
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"The Landlady" by Roald Dahl
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The Things They Carried
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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.
The growing popularity of these products hinges on a tantalizing hook: bond-like yield payments that may, in some cases, exceed 15% as a target.
From MarketWatch ● Sep. 18, 2026
"I think the great significance of these findings, and the tantalizing picture that it promotes, is a great motivation and reason to further examine solid-state nitrogen physics at very low temperatures," Umurhan said.
From Science Daily ● Sep. 17, 2026
Napoleon’s invasion failed, but the experts he sent in—draftsmen, scientists, archaeologists—found tantalizing glimpses of ancient wonders such as the Rosetta Stone and the Luxor obelisk.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 12, 2026
Consider “Coyote vs. Acme” a tantalizing pile of popcorn in the median.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 26, 2026
The air was fetid; it brought him no more than a tantalizing whiff of anything natural and good.
From "Tiger, Tiger" by Lynne Reid Banks
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Get a wordDefinitions 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.
