harrowing
Americanadjective
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of harrowing
Explanation
Being attacked by a hungry shark or being chased by an unruly mob on the streets can be described as harrowing, which means "provoking feelings of fear or horror." The adjective harrowing is often used to describe a firsthand experience that is terrifying, such as a harrowing drive home in icy weather, but it can also refer to a secondhand experience, such as reading or watching something that is very frightening or disturbing. If you read someone’s account of being shipwrecked in Antarctica, you might describe that as a harrowing story. A harrowing experience typically unfolds over a period of time. For example, if you bump into a shark while swimming, that’s merely scary. If the shark attacks you, then it becomes a harrowing ordeal.
Vocabulary lists containing harrowing
The Vocabulary.com Top 1000
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Grade 9, List 5
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The Catcher in the Rye
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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.
An uncle and his nephew had a harrowing experience Monday afternoon when the engine on their two-seat plane died, forcing them to make an emergency landing on Huntington State Beach.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 28, 2026
While the situations Ms. Abrams describes look harrowing on paper, the music never makes you feel it.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 21, 2026
Beck took a pass at the late Elliott Smith’s ghostly “Needle in The Hay,” used to harrowing effect in the same film, and later Love’s “Alone Again, Or”.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 11, 2026
A local teachers' union has told the BBC of its "relief" - but families say the ordeal has been harrowing and they are still waiting to be reunited with their loved ones.
From BBC ● Jul. 11, 2026
Red had waited too long to interpret Toomer’s harrowing walk down the center of the bus.
From "The Great Santini" by Pat Conroy
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.
