thrill

[thril]

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR thrill ON THESAURUS.COM

verb (used with object)

to affect with a sudden wave of keen emotion or excitement, as to produce a tremor or tingling sensation through the body.

to utter or send forth tremulously, as a melody.

verb (used without object)

to affect one with a wave of emotion or excitement.

to be stirred by a tremor or tingling sensation of emotion or excitement: He thrilled at the thought of home.

to cause a prickling or tingling sensation; throb.

to move tremulously; vibrate; quiver.

noun

a sudden wave of keen emotion or excitement, sometimes manifested as a tremor or tingling sensation passing through the body.

something that produces or is capable of producing such a sensation: a story full of thrills.

a thrilling experience: It was a thrill to see Paris again.

a vibration or quivering.

Pathology. an abnormal tremor or vibration, as in the respiratory or vascular system.

Origin of thrill

1250–1300; Middle English thrillen orig., to penetrate, metathetic variant of thirlen to thirl

Related formssub·thrill, nounun·thrilled, adjective

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Related Words for thrill

fun, pleasure, inspiration, adventure, wallop, tickle, inspire, electrify, enchant, wow, delight, titillate, animate, upper, flash, twitter, lift, circus, bang, refreshment

Examples from the Web for thrill

Contemporary Examples of thrill

For Paul, the thrill of breakfast with the Reverend, may be giving way to the taste of burnt toast.
GOP Won’t Forgive Rand for Cop Critique
Lloyd Green
December 23, 2014
Get a thrill, get off a lucky shot, take home a trophy, put it up in a secret chamber of our heart.
McConaughey’s ‘Stand’—And Ours
James Poulos
December 5, 2014
A wonderful accomplishment by Kevin and his team and a thrill for Les and Leslie Parrott.
How the Religious Right Scams Its Way Onto the New York Times Bestseller List
Warren Throckmorton
November 16, 2014
Most of us in that category can remember the thrill of seeing our words appear in public for the first time.
You Can Look It Up: The Wikipedia Story
Walter Isaacson
October 19, 2014
It surely however gives a certain type of feller a thrill, dark and shameful though it may be.
The Dirty Secret Doctors Don't Want You To Know
Kent Sepkowitz
August 22, 2014

Historical Examples of thrill

There came a thrill in her heart each time she thought of that—that she loved him.
Within the Law
Marvin Dana
He clapped his hands, with that thrill of joy which true art will ever give to a true artist.
The White Company
Arthur Conan Doyle
The discovery of Tillie's hiding-place interested but did not thrill him.
K
Mary Roberts Rinehart
The great voice had not caused him to feel any thrill or emotion whatever.
The Foolish Lovers
St. John G. Ervine
With his pretty, joyous carol, which should thrill the heart of men?
Punchinello, Vol. 1, Issue 10, Saturday, June 4, 1870
Various

British Dictionary definitions for thrill

thrill

noun

a sudden sensation of excitement and pleasureseeing his book for sale gave him a thrill

a situation producing such a sensationit was a thrill to see Rome for the first time

a trembling sensation caused by fear or emotional shock

pathol an abnormal slight tremor associated with a heart or vascular murmur, felt on palpation

verb

to feel or cause to feel a thrill

to tremble or cause to tremble; vibrate or quiver

Word Origin for thrill

Old English thӯrlian to pierce, from thyrel hole; see nostril, through

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Word Origin and History for thrill

c.1300, "to pierce, penetrate," metathesis of Old English þyrlian, from þyrel "hole" (in Middle English, also "nostril"), from þurh "through" (cf. Middle High German dürchel "pierced, perforated;" see through) + -el. Meaning "give a shivering, exciting feeling" is first recorded 1590s, via metaphoric notion of "pierce with emotion." Related: Thrilled; thrilling.

"a shivering, exciting feeling," 1670s, from thrill (v.). Meaning "a thrilling experience" is attested from 1936.

thrill in Medicine

thrill

[thrĭl]

n.

The vibration accompanying a cardiac or vascular murmur, detectible on palpation.