stirring
Americanadjective
-
rousing, exciting, or thrilling.
a stirring speech.
-
moving, active, bustling, or lively.
a stirring business.
noun
-
stirrings
plural
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a mental impulse, sensation, or feeling.
stirrings of hope.
-
a small movement.
the best thing she could do was to pretend that her husband's nocturnal stirrings didn't wake her
adjective
-
exciting the emotions; stimulating
-
active, lively, or busy
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Etymology
Origin of stirring
before 900; Middle English stiringe, Old English styriende. See stir 1, -ing 2
Explanation
Something that's stirring is gripping or moving—it inspires some kind of powerful emotion, like Martin Luther King, Jr.'s stirring "I Have a Dream" speech. When people sing stirring songs at church, during a protest march, or around the piano at home, they might make you cry, while a stirring public speaker often makes the crowd feel enthusiastic and roused to action. In the 15th century, this adjective had a much more literal meaning: "in active motion, or animated." The verb stir, "move, rouse, or agitate," shares a root with storm.
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.
See Examples For:
But there were also surprising increases in the prices of goods like apparel, stirring concern that high energy prices were starting to drive up inflation elsewhere by increasing transportation costs.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 14, 2026
"For us Hungarians, paprika is a wonder," one of the competitors, local fast-food restaurant owner Imre Zseni said, while stirring a beef stew.
From Barron's ● Oct. 4, 2026
The trophy is a giant version of the traditional wooden tool used for stirring porridge, thick soups, and stew.
From BBC ● Oct. 2, 2026
These protest-laden times couldn’t be more receptive to the stirring “Everybody to Kenmure Street,” which speaks to a moment when the machinery of institutional cruelty was ground to a halt by righteous neighborliness.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 2, 2026
With his old tail stirring up the dust, he looked up at her.
From "Summer of the Monkeys" by Wilson Rawls
Celtic took care of Rangers on Sunday to set up the grandest finale, a round of fixtures on Wednesday and then the last stirrings on Saturday.
From BBC ● May 10, 2026
And everywhere the ambient stirrings of the 16-speaker Bang & Olufsen mega-audio with integrated noise canceling, featuring a “Quiet mode” that allows adults in front to talk without waking the kids.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 2, 2025
These cozy, arboreal stays come with peace and quiet among the stirrings of chipmunks, deer and bald eagles.
From Seattle Times ● Jan. 20, 2024
But that’s why it’s so weirdly moving to watch the stirrings of a deeper consciousness, her gradual recognition of her place in a world that’s far more brutally misshapen than she is.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 1, 2023
I strained to listen, as if I might hear the whisperings and stirrings of the past.
From "Moon Over Manifest" by Clare Vanderpool
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