Synonyms

tantalizing

American

[tan-tl-ahy-zing] / ˈtæn tlˌaɪ zɪŋ /

adjective

having or exhibiting something that provokes or arouses expectation, interest, or desire, especially that which remains unobtainable or beyond one's reach.

a tantalizing taste of success.

Other Word Forms

tantalizingly adverb
untantalizing adjective

Etymology

Origin of tantalizing

First recorded in 1650–60; tantalize + -ing ²

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.

So-called leveraged exchange-traded funds offer a tantalizing prospect—to double, or sometimes triple, stock market moves.

From Barron's • Mar. 23, 2026

And yet the prospect of using origami to improve existing technologies is, for some, tantalizing.

From BBC • Mar. 3, 2026

This elusive, tantalizing novel aims for the effect of the raga—to conjure “the sadness, the richness, the pleasure of the waiting and the wandering.”

From The Wall Street Journal • Feb. 20, 2026

His precious moments are not memories of an idealized past, nor projections of a tantalizing dream, but interventions in our complex present that reveal beautiful and unsettling layers.

From Los Angeles Times • Feb. 16, 2026

But they too had been captivated by the tantalizing smell.

From "The Long-Lost Home" by Maryrose Wood

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023