1
as in terrifying
causing fear
a scary movie that gave the child nightmares for weeks afterwards
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in timid
easily frightened
a scary horse who spooked and kicked at its own shadow
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
3
as in scared
filled with fear or dread
I got a little scary when I heard the noise in the basement
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a scary movie
a scary thought
a terrifying thought
a horrifying thought
a frightening thought
a chilling thought
a horrible thought
scary stories
a scary time
a scary situation
a terrifying situation
a dangerous situation
a frightening situation
a bad situation
a crazy situation
Examples Sentences
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Recent Examples of scary
With scary precision, the playwright captures the delusion that roots itself in families who use faith to control.
—
Lovia Gyarkye, The Hollywood Reporter, 13 Dec. 2024
Arizona is known for scorpions, tarantulas and other scary bugs, but that's not all.
—Tiffany Acosta, The Arizona Republic, 13 Dec. 2024
Sam LaPorta has begun to emerge, which is scary after his strong rookie season last year.
—Fox News Staff, Fox News, 11 Dec. 2024
However, digging down into the detail revealed the really scary statistics: 154 million were listed as being authentication cookies, with 23.5 million still active, and 37 million listed as login cookies with 6.6 million active.
—Davey Winder, Forbes, 2 Dec. 2024
See all Example Sentences for scary 
Lovia Gyarkye, The Hollywood Reporter, 13 Dec. 2024
Arizona is known for scorpions, tarantulas and other scary bugs, but that's not all.
—Tiffany Acosta, The Arizona Republic, 13 Dec. 2024
Sam LaPorta has begun to emerge, which is scary after his strong rookie season last year.
—Fox News Staff, Fox News, 11 Dec. 2024
However, digging down into the detail revealed the really scary statistics: 154 million were listed as being authentication cookies, with 23.5 million still active, and 37 million listed as login cookies with 6.6 million active.
—Davey Winder, Forbes, 2 Dec. 2024
See all Example Sentences for scary
Recent Examples of Synonyms for scary
Adjective
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Three years later, Dex's death deals a major blow to several key characters on the long-running soap, potentially introduces a terrifying new killer, and leaves behind plenty of questions as to how the series will proceed without him.Ryan Coleman, EW.com, 13 Dec. 2024
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The paranormal phenomena spooking Spongebob and Squidward has a mundane explanation, but the entity flickering the lights turns out to be none other than Nosferatu, who reassures them with a terrifying smile; amusingly, Spongebob and Squidward are relieved to see him.Dani Di Placido, Forbes, 13 Dec. 2024
Adjective
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The prologue might end with a paroxysm of violence, but first there are a few timid whimpers of nascent pleasure; Bill Skarsgård’s base and primal Count Orlok is a nightmare who arrives on the wings of a nocturnal emission.David Ehrlich, IndieWire, 2 Dec. 2024
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Unexpectedly, the timid Noa takes his brother’s side, wrapping a scarf around his uncle’s neck.Rafaela Bassili, Vulture, 4 Oct. 2024
Adjective
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That evening, in the no man’s land, a field strewn with empty water bottles, four Shia families sat on a picnic blanket around a burner attached to a gas tank, looking scared and drinking yerba mate.Eliza Griswold, The New Yorker, 17 Dec. 2024
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Once glued to their hiding spot, a scared cat may not come out when called by its owner.Claire Thornton, USA TODAY, 13 Dec. 2024
Adjective
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That Daniel Penny acted to defend others from a frightening figure on the train was of no legal relevance, from the prosecution’s point of view, given that Neely did not have a weapon or threaten a specific passenger directly.Adam Iscoe, The New Yorker, 9 Dec. 2024
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However, Humbert decided to go it alone and ended up being the victim of quite a frightening shark attack.Daniel R. Depetris, Newsweek, 7 Dec. 2024
Adjective
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Insiders expect a short-term funding bill that kicks the spending battle to early next year, although Republican senators are fearful that chaos in the House could derail Trump’s agenda.Jonathan Easley, The Hill, 12 Dec. 2024
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Nguyen said that in the wake of this nationwide trend, the Asian community is fearful but is coming together and taking extra precautions to be safe.Deena Zaru, ABC News, 12 Dec. 2024
Adjective
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One who hates raisins and one who’s afraid of the wind.Armond White, National Review, 13 Dec. 2024
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Alarmed, the complaint continues, the girls became afraid and pulled over near a Dollar General, just over a mile southeast of downtown Nashville.Natalie Neysa Alund, USA TODAY, 13 Dec. 2024
Adjective
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The Chiefs also have rookie Xavier Worthy, but the team needs another receiver on par with Hopkins to ensure the offense stays formidable.Gordon G. Chang, Newsweek, 12 Dec. 2024
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By her 30th birthday, Giovanni was regularly publishing poems that tapped into the transformative power of focusing inward as a community—and working through what that meant in practice alongside formidable intellectuals such as James Baldwin.Hannah Giorgis, The Atlantic, 11 Dec. 2024
Adjective
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His fervor to determine who took the weapon reveals a shockingly monstrous side, turning his wife and children into frightened suspects and leading to a jarring tonal-shift ending that proves to be a cathartic, believable final destination for a film simmering with mistrust and anger.Tim Grierson, Los Angeles Times, 28 Nov. 2024
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At worst, this could lead to one or more Kent State-type incidents, with frightened Guardsmen in hostile, unfamiliar territory.Chicago Tribune, Chicago Tribune, 21 Nov. 2024
Thesaurus Entries Near scary
Cite this Entry
“Scary.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/scary. Accessed 21 Dec. 2024.
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