tantalizing
Americanadjective
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of tantalizing
Explanation
Something tantalizing is tempting: like a meal that smells amazing and makes you want to eat it. Tantalizing things are very appealing. When something is tantalizing, it makes you want it, even if it's totally out of reach. An exciting movie trailer could be tantalizing if it makes you want to see the movie. A little part of a song can be tantalizing if it tempts you to hear more. Smells — when they're good smells — can be very tantalizing. Just walking through a good restaurant, smelling and looking at the food, is a tantalizing experience.
Vocabulary lists containing tantalizing
The Giver
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"The Landlady" by Roald Dahl
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The Things They Carried
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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.
When Rory McIlroy sprayed his drive far to the right on the final hole of the Masters last month, it opened the door to a tantalizing possibility.
From The Wall Street Journal • May 13, 2026
“There are tantalizing signs that businesses are starting to pull the trigger on new hires,” said Scott Anderson, chief U.S. economist at BMO Capital Markets.
From MarketWatch • May 2, 2026
There will be many more jaw-dropping moments in the tantalizing weeks ahead, many games that will take big turns.
From BBC • Apr. 27, 2026
Ultimately, TYG is a tantalizing bet for anyone interested in the long-term bull case for AI energy infrastructure.
From Barron's • Apr. 3, 2026
Such studies are tantalizing but severely limited, for they can’t explain why DeShawn didn’t get the call.
From "Freakonomics: A Rogue Economist Explores the Hidden Side of Everything" by Steven D. Levitt
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.
