eerie

adjective

ee·​rie ˈir-ē 

variants or less commonly eery

eerier; eeriest

1

: so mysterious, strange, or unexpected as to send a chill up the spine

a coyote's eerie howl

the similarities were eerie

also : seemingly not of earthly origin

the flames cast an eerie glow

2

chiefly Scotland : affected with fright : scared

eeriness

ˈir-ē-nəs 

noun

Synonyms of eerie

• haunting
• creepy

Choose the Right Synonym for eerie

weird, eerie, uncanny mean mysteriously strange or fantastic.

weird may imply an unearthly or supernatural strangeness or it may stress peculiarity or oddness.

weird creatures from another world

eerie suggests an uneasy or fearful consciousness that mysterious and malign powers are at work.

an eerie calm preceded the bombing raid

uncanny implies disquieting strangeness or mysteriousness.

an uncanny resemblance between total strangers

Examples of eerie in a Sentence

The flames cast an eerie glow.

a land of eerie beauty

Recent Examples on the Web

Its best parts have a grandeur that surpasses its industrial settings and gets at something eerie and transcendent. — Alison Willmore, Vulture, 7 Oct. 2026

As Bijan Robinson raced down the sideline and the rest of his Falcons teammates sprinted in pursuit, a mixture of an eerie hush and a stunned buzz fell over Caesars Superdome from a crowd still not entirely settled in its seats. — Daniel Flick, AJC.com, 6 Oct. 2026

An occasional bird would chirp in the distance, but the forest emanated an eerie stillness, said Young, a research ecologist at the University of California, Davis. — Taylor Romine, CNN Money, 4 Oct. 2026

Shawn and his father found the man on the easternmost coast of their island shortly after dusk, when the sky was drained of almost all its orange light and the waves had grown dark, topped with an eerie froth. — Rachel Heng, New Yorker, 4 Oct. 2026

Word History

Etymology

Middle English (northern dialect) eri

First Known Use

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 2

Rhymes for eerie

• beery
• bleary
• cheery
• cirri
• dearie
• deary
• dreary
• kiri
• leary
• leery
• peery
• query

Kids Definition

eerie

adjective

ee·​rie

variants also eery

ˈi(ə)r-ē 

eerier; eeriest

: causing fear or uneasiness because of strangeness or gloominess

an eerie shadow

eerily

ˈir-ə-lē 

adverb

eeriness

ˈir-ē-nəs 

noun