alarming

American

[uh-lahr-ming] / əˈlɑr mɪŋ /

adjective

causing alarm or fear.

an alarming case of pneumonia; an alarming lack of respect.

Other Word Forms

alarmingly adverb
unalarming adjective
unalarmingly adverb

Etymology

Origin of alarming

First recorded in 1670–80; alarm + -ing ²

Explanation

Something that's alarming is disturbing or upsetting. It can be alarming when you hear a sudden, loud crash of thunder. The idea of climate change is very alarming to many people, and the sound of a police car's siren is alarming when you're driving. Things that are alarming grab your attention, and either frighten you or at least unsettle you. The adjective alarming comes from alarm, via the Old French alarme, which is rooted in the Italian interjection all'arme, a rally or warning cry, "to arms!"

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Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

The e-bike craze, which is putting many people, including kids, in the hospital at an alarming rate, has thus far defied similar regulatory frameworks.

From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 14, 2026

By mid-March, alarming snow deficits all over the Western states were capped off by a record-breaking heat wave that melted much of the remaining snowpack.

From Slate • Apr. 11, 2026

Although the surge in redemption requests among non-traded BDCs seems alarming, the firm believes investors are witnessing a liquidity-driven event fueled by fear, rather than a fundamental decline in credit quality.

From Barron's • Apr. 7, 2026

Government inspections of nursing homes “found alarming instances of inappropriate use of antipsychotic drugs and revealed vulnerabilities in care that have implications for the wider nursing home population,” the HHS inspector general’s office reports.

From MarketWatch • Apr. 7, 2026

The whirlpool deepens at alarming speed, and the spiraling water pulls away from us, until I am looking down a funnel that has no visible bottom.

From "Challenger Deep" by Neal Shusterman

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023