alarming
Americanadjective
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of alarming
Explanation
Something that's alarming is disturbing or upsetting. It can be alarming when you hear a sudden, loud crash of thunder. The idea of climate change is very alarming to many people, and the sound of a police car's siren is alarming when you're driving. Things that are alarming grab your attention, and either frighten you or at least unsettle you. The adjective alarming comes from alarm, via the Old French alarme, which is rooted in the Italian interjection all'arme, a rally or warning cry, "to arms!"
Vocabulary lists containing alarming
The Magician's Nephew
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The Miraculous Journey of Edward Tulane
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Uh-Oh: Synonyms for "Dangerous"
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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 implications are alarming, since there currently are four industry groupings within the S&P 1,500 index that have trailing two-year alphas of at least 100 percentage points.
From MarketWatch • May 18, 2026
A particularly alarming example depicts the two parties through the window of a cafe, smiling together over a glass of wine.
From The Wall Street Journal • May 16, 2026
Perhaps most alarming is that, according to the CDC, 1 in every 5 babies with vitamin K deficiency bleeding will die.
From Salon • May 7, 2026
That sounds alarming, but it amounts to corporate restructuring ahead of his rocket company’s record-setting initial public offering.
From Barron's • May 7, 2026
Sheila's constant wail is alarming, like a siren screaming through town toward an unknown disaster.
From "How It Went Down" by Kekla Magoon
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.
