tantalize
verb (used with object)
to torment with, or as if with, the sight of something desired but out of reach; tease by arousing expectations that are repeatedly disappointed.
have tantalized
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present perfectof tantalize.present perfect
Used to describe actions that started in the past and continue into or have direct relevance to the present.
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.
He may have tantalized the crowds with promises of one more thing, but he always believed in the power of fewer things.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Mar. 21, 2026
Such prognostications have tantalized many eager for the fabled liberation of a century ago — what Fitzgerald described as “the most expensive orgy in history.”
From Seattle Times ● May 28, 2021
He shared two records that have tantalized him the most: typed letters to Nicolas Boddington, a senior official at the Special Operations Executive, the British wartime spy service.
From Washington Post ● Dec. 29, 2017
The Washington Nationals, who have tantalized fans this winter with futile pursuits of big-name closers, finally signed one Tuesday afternoon — though he is 42 years old and far from a sure ninth-inning thing.
From Washington Post ● Jan. 31, 2017
Pitezel’s almost hallucinatory description must have tantalized Holmes, for he wrote to Cigrand and offered her a job as his personal secretary, at twice the salary she was making in Keeley.
From "The Devil in the White City" by Erik Larson
