eerie
or ee·ry
- uncanny, so as to inspire superstitious fear; weird: an eerie midnight howl.
- Chiefly Scot. affected with superstitious fear.
Origin of eerie
Synonyms for eerie
Examples from the Web for eeriness
Historical Examples of eeriness
Is there a relationship here, or is it only a similarity of eeriness in temper?
Adventures in the ArtsMarsden Hartley
Not the least detail seemed lacking to enhance the eeriness of the scene.
The Cradle of MankindW.A. Wigram
It lessened the eeriness a lot to know beforehand what a Martian looked like.
Stamped CautionRaymond Zinke Gallun
To-night the eeriness and dramatic intensity of a notable crime lay at the very doors of the village.
The Postmaster's DaughterLouis Tracy
He felt again the eeriness of this desertion, and hurried on past the silent places.
Merton of the MoviesHarry Leon Wilson
eerie
- (esp of places, an atmosphere, etc) mysteriously or uncannily frightening or disturbing; weird; ghostly
Word Origin for eerie
Word Origin and History for eeriness
eerie
c.1300, "fearful, timid," north England and Scottish variant of Old English earg "cowardly, fearful," from Proto-Germanic *argaz (cf. Old Frisian erg "evil, bad," Middle Dutch arch "bad," Dutch arg, Old High German arg "cowardly, worthless," German arg "bad, wicked," Old Norse argr "unmanly, voluptuous," Swedish arg "malicious").
Sense of "causing fear because of strangeness" is first attested 1792. Related: Eerily. Finnish arka "cowardly" is a Germanic loan-word.