: gravely disturbing or frightening
a chilling case of abuse
Examples of chilling in a Sentence
a Southern visitor who was unused to the chilling air of a Northeast winter
Recent Examples on the Web
In actual practice, Chloe Guidry and Izzy G. steal the show, along with other stuff, in performances that range from uncomfortable bad-girl posing to chilling, casual cruelty — Izzy G.’s character in particular.
—
Bill Goodykoontz, The Arizona Republic, 16 Apr. 2024
Daniel Wong's involvement in Jennifer Pan's plot to murder her parents is covered in Netflix's documentary 'What Jennifer Did'
Jennifer Pan and Daniel Wong are in the headlines yet again as Netflix revisits their chilling murder plot in What Jennifer Did.
—Kelsie Gibson, Peoplemag, 15 Apr. 2024
The chilling line came from a 1902 letter written by the Commissioner of Indian Affairs to a school superintendent in California about the need to assimilate Native students returning home from boarding schools.
—Jillian Steinhauer, New York Times, 13 Apr. 2024
The movie’s most chilling sequence—in a nicely demented touch, Jesse Plemons, Dunst’s offscreen husband, pops up as a murderous psychopath—is also its most dubiously contrived.
—Justin Chang, The New Yorker, 12 Apr. 2024
Marshall Weinbaum, a 17-year veteran of Disney’s PR department, was the mastermind behind what might be the most chilling press campaign since those missing person posters went up at Sundance for The Blair Witch Project.
—Benjamin Svetkey, The Hollywood Reporter, 10 Apr. 2024
The First Omen, a chilling prequel to the 1976 horror classic The Omen, brought sinister nuns back to the box office only two weeks after Immaculate premiered.
—Shania Russell, EW.com, 7 Apr. 2024
Bobby Singh, a local activist and Sacramento State student who was close to Nijjar, received a chilling death threat days after the Sikh leader was killed.
—Joe Rubin, Sacramento Bee, 2 Apr. 2024
Separately, a chilling recent report in Sky News Arabia detailed how in the capital, Khartoum, protracted, grueling urban warfare has led to a spike in the migration of European vultures and a boom in the population of stray dogs, all drawn to the city’s carrion.
—Ishaan Tharoor, Washington Post, 1 Apr. 2024
Bill Goodykoontz, The Arizona Republic, 16 Apr. 2024
Daniel Wong's involvement in Jennifer Pan's plot to murder her parents is covered in Netflix's documentary 'What Jennifer Did'
Jennifer Pan and Daniel Wong are in the headlines yet again as Netflix revisits their chilling murder plot in What Jennifer Did.
—Kelsie Gibson, Peoplemag, 15 Apr. 2024
The chilling line came from a 1902 letter written by the Commissioner of Indian Affairs to a school superintendent in California about the need to assimilate Native students returning home from boarding schools.
—Jillian Steinhauer, New York Times, 13 Apr. 2024
The movie’s most chilling sequence—in a nicely demented touch, Jesse Plemons, Dunst’s offscreen husband, pops up as a murderous psychopath—is also its most dubiously contrived.
—Justin Chang, The New Yorker, 12 Apr. 2024
Marshall Weinbaum, a 17-year veteran of Disney’s PR department, was the mastermind behind what might be the most chilling press campaign since those missing person posters went up at Sundance for The Blair Witch Project.
—Benjamin Svetkey, The Hollywood Reporter, 10 Apr. 2024
The First Omen, a chilling prequel to the 1976 horror classic The Omen, brought sinister nuns back to the box office only two weeks after Immaculate premiered.
—Shania Russell, EW.com, 7 Apr. 2024
Bobby Singh, a local activist and Sacramento State student who was close to Nijjar, received a chilling death threat days after the Sikh leader was killed.
—Joe Rubin, Sacramento Bee, 2 Apr. 2024
Separately, a chilling recent report in Sky News Arabia detailed how in the capital, Khartoum, protracted, grueling urban warfare has led to a spike in the migration of European vultures and a boom in the population of stray dogs, all drawn to the city’s carrion.
—Ishaan Tharoor, Washington Post, 1 Apr. 2024
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'chilling.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Dictionary Entries Near chilling
Cite this Entry
“Chilling.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/chilling. Accessed 19 Apr. 2024.
Copy CitationKids Definition
chilling
adjective
chill·ing
ˈchil-iŋ 
: very disturbing or frightening
a chilling case of abuse
chillingly
adverb
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