- present participle of exhilarate.
exhilarating
Britishadjective
Other Word Forms
Explanation
Something exhilarating is so exciting it makes you a little giddy. "Snowboarding that black-diamond trail was exhilarating!" Zipping through the snow is certainly exhilarating, but ski bunnies and snowboarders might not choose this fancy adjective first. They might just yell, "Woohoo!" It's always been a fun-loving word; its Latin roots mean "gladden, cheer." A ride on a glass elevator with a cute vampire could be exhilarating, and so could a surprise party, or a ride on an old roller coaster. It can be so refreshing, you can't exhale after something exhilarating happens.
Vocabulary lists containing exhilarating
The Giver
Looking to grow your vocabulary? Check out this interactive, curated word list from our team of English language specialists at Vocabulary.com – one of over 17,000 lists we've built to help learners worldwide!
Essential Academic Vocabulary for Middle School Students, List 2
Interested in learning more words like this one? Our team at Vocabulary.com has got you covered! You can review flashcards, quiz yourself, practice spelling, and more – and it's all completely free to use!
The Joy Luck Club
Want to remember this word for good? Start your learning journey today with our library of interactive, themed word lists built by the experts at Vocabulary.com – we'll help you make the most of your study time!
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 electricity being generated from Madison Square Garden to my TV during Game 4 was exhilarating!
From Los Angeles Times • Jun. 13, 2026
After the choir won the pubic vote in the semi-final on 23 May, Ben Chick, a farmer based in Sixpenny Handley, Dorset, said performing that day "was the most exhilarating experience".
From BBC • May 31, 2026
Ben Chick, a farmer based in Sixpenny Handley, Dorset, said performing on Saturday "was the most exhilarating experience".
From BBC • May 24, 2026
Yet, despite this occasional datedness, “Love and Death in the American Novel” remains wonderfully alive, being iconoclastic, polemical, exhilarating and, not least, fun to read.
From The Wall Street Journal • May 22, 2026
The tugging sensation became more intense, painful even, but there was something exhilarating about seeing all that salt water.
From "The Battle of the Labyrinth" by Rick Riordan
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.
