frightening

adjective

fright·​en·​ing ˈfrī-tᵊn-iŋ 

ˈfrīt-niŋ

: causing fear

frightening news

a very frightening experience

The man with red eyes made the frightening grimace that passed for his smile.

—Madeleine L'Engle

For a man who had tussled with crocs, venomous snakes and other frightening creatures, this was going to be a leisurely swim.

—Jennifer Wulff et al.

Synonyms

• alarming
• dire
• direful
• dread
• dreadful
• fearful
• fearsome
• forbidding
• formidable
• frightful
• ghastly
• hair-raising
• horrendous
• horrible
• horrifying
• intimidating
• redoubtable
• scary
• shocking
• spine-chilling
• terrible
• terrifying

Examples of frightening in a Sentence

a truly frightening movie

Recent Examples on the Web

For example, people often dodge screenings and diagnostic tests to avoid the frightening possibility of discovering cancer. —Discover Magazine, 8 Nov. 2024

Demi Moore is sharing scary photos of a frightening side of her character in the body horror movie The Substance. —Tim Lammers, Forbes, 1 Nov. 2024

The frightening concoction is the same for all legacy media companies that rely on traditional pay-TV for the bulk of their revenue: Cable subscribers are dropping by the millions each year, and streaming – as a replacement service – is either unprofitable or barely profitable. —Alex Sherman, CNBC, 31 Oct. 2024

Katie Hafner: Getting a breast cancer diagnosis is frightening at any time. —Katie Hafner, Scientific American, 31 Oct. 2024

Word History

Etymology

from present participle of frighten

First Known Use

1652, in the meaning defined above