eerie

Or ee·ry

[eer-ee]

adjective

eerier, eeriest 

1. uncanny, so as to inspire superstitious fear; weird

   an eerie midnight howl.

2. Chiefly Scot.,  affected with superstitious fear.

eerie

/ ˈɪərɪ /

adjective

1. (esp of places, an atmosphere, etc) mysteriously or uncannily frightening or disturbing; weird; ghostly

Other Word Forms

• eerily adverb
• eeriness noun

Word History and Origins

Origin of eerie¹

First recorded in 1250–1300; Middle English eri, dialectal variant of argh, Old English earg “cowardly”; cognate with Old Frisian erg, Old Norse argr “evil,” German arg “cowardly”

Word History and Origins

Origin of eerie¹

C13: originally Scottish and Northern English, probably from Old English earg cowardly, miserable

Synonym Study

See weird.

Example Sentences

The rest of the structure remains unnamed, adding a sense of mystery to this eerie formation.

Read more on Science Daily

“His work made me feel seen and inspired me to embrace my own love for the eerie and the extraordinary,” she says.

Read more on Los Angeles Times

Both are a bit shakier in their execution than some of Mr. Carpenter’s previous efforts, but they’re also filled with memorably eerie moods and pictures.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

Tim Hookway, a British national staying in Montego Bay, said the atmosphere had been "eerie and strangely muted the last couple of days".

Read more on BBC

I let myself fantasize about doing the same with my baby, about hearing the cries as soon as he or she emerged instead of eerie silence.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

Related Words

• bizarre 
• creepy 
• eldritch 
• fantastic 
• frightening www.thesaurus.com
• ghostly 
• mysterious 
• scary 
• strange 
• supernatural 
• uncanny 
• weird