eerie means inspiring fear, especially in a mysterious or shadowy way; strange, weird. It carries an Arena rating of 1648, earned across 3 head-to-head judged battles.
Among words judged in Lexicurio's Arena, eerie ranks #1,308 of 14,322 for Scariest Words, #2,350 of 14,448 for Most Incisive Words, #2,382 of 14,414 for Most Elegant Words, #3,369 of 14,451 for Most Whimsical Words.
eerie is pronounced /ˈɪəɹi/.
Why “eerie” is a great word
Inspiring a creeping dread through a strange, mysterious, or unnaturally quiet atmosphere. From Middle English *eri* ("fearful"), from Old English *earg* ("cowardly, fearful"), from Proto-Germanic *argaz*. Unlike "weird," which points to the odd or unnatural, or "frightening," which announces its alarm directly, eerie implies a subtle, haunting vacancy that unsettles the nerves. It is the profound silence that descends on a forest when all birds cease their song, a child's laughter echoing from an empty hallway, or the chill that attends an abandoned house where a single light still burns. It is not the scream, but the silence just before it—the quiet conviction that the world has withheld some essential information.
Etymology
From Middle English eri (“fearful”), from Old English earg (“cowardly, fearful”), from Proto-West Germanic *arg, from Proto-Germanic *argaz. Akin to Scots ergh, argh from the same Old English source. Doublet of argh.
adj
- Inspiring fear, especially in a mysterious or shadowy way; strange, weird.“The eerie sounds seemed to come from the graveyard after midnight.”
- Frightened, timid.“She began to feel eerie.”
noun
- An eerie creature or thing.“Other of these terrible Eeries began now to congregate beneath the canoe, taking courage by the example of their cowardly companion, all alike curious about this charming visitant in the upper world.”
Words closest in meaning
By meaning, not spelling — each word's AI semantic fingerprint, nearest first.