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
Madeleine L'EngleFor 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.
Jennifer Wulff et al.Examples of frightening in a Sentence
a truly frightening movie
Recent Examples on the Web
Through it all, the Jurassic Park franchise continued to break new ground, surprising and captivating audiences with fresh, new and unexpected developments in each installment, made all the more vivid, realistic and frightening with the latest in CGI and believable acting.
—Jan Wagner, San Diego Union-Tribune, 17 July 2025
Perhaps most frightening of all is the fact that, in rural areas, such calamity occurs before any official help can arrive.
—Jessica Pishko, New Yorker, 15 July 2025
The actor has quite the legacy of voice work, notably bringing to life the lovably frightening Sulley in Pixar’s Monsters Inc. franchise.
—Ryan Gajewski, HollywoodReporter, 11 July 2025
Workers described the operation as chaotic and frightening, with agents reportedly separating employees into groups and questioning their immigration status.
—Amanda Castro
billal Rahman, MSNBC Newsweek, 11 July 2025
See All Example Sentences for frightening
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Jan Wagner, San Diego Union-Tribune, 17 July 2025
Perhaps most frightening of all is the fact that, in rural areas, such calamity occurs before any official help can arrive.
—Jessica Pishko, New Yorker, 15 July 2025
The actor has quite the legacy of voice work, notably bringing to life the lovably frightening Sulley in Pixar’s Monsters Inc. franchise.
—Ryan Gajewski, HollywoodReporter, 11 July 2025
Workers described the operation as chaotic and frightening, with agents reportedly separating employees into groups and questioning their immigration status.
—Amanda Castro
billal Rahman, MSNBC Newsweek, 11 July 2025
See All Example Sentences for frightening
Cite this Entry
“Frightening.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/frightening. Accessed 22 Jul. 2025.
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