thrilling
Americanadjective
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producing sudden, strong, and deep emotion or excitement.
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producing a tremor, as by chilling.
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vibrating; trembling; quivering.
adjective
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very exciting or stimulating
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vibrating or trembling
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Etymology
Origin of thrilling
Explanation
When something is thrilling, it makes you feel excited or exhilarated. Roller coasters are thrilling for some people—other people just find them nauseating. If your heart is beating fast and you feel absolutely elated, something thrilling is happening. Some of us find it thrilling to speak in front of a crowd or to dive into a cold lake. It's also thrilling to see your favorite movie star in person or to get a poem published in a magazine. The adjective thrilling comes from the verb thrill, which originally meant "pierce," and later "give a shivering excitement" or "pierce with emotion."
Vocabulary lists containing thrilling
List 1
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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.
Thrilling and coronary-inducing - exactly as it should be.
From BBC • Jul. 26, 2025
Thrilling, but also cortisol-spiking; the sense of being trapped like animals in a zoo is intensified by an obsidian two-way mirror on Wilson Chin’s spartan set.
From New York Times • Feb. 1, 2024
Thrilling and atmospheric: Hayley Scrivenor’s debut novel is a vivid, slow burn that unravels the baffling disappearance of 12-year-old Esther.
From Seattle Times • Jul. 26, 2022
Thrilling yet densely detailed, it’s like a movie in four minutes.
From Los Angeles Times • Feb. 10, 2022
Thrilling tales of long departed patrons who haunt the old red house are told by the Misses Lewis and Evans, who lived in this house for several years.
From Seaport in Virginia George Washington's Alexandria by Moore, Gay Montague
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.
