thrill
thrill — noun
- thrillsingular
- thrillsplural
1. the pleasant, intense excitement you feel when you do something you really enjoy
the pleasant, intense excitement you feel when you do something you really enjoy
Sofia felt a thrill of excitement when she opened the letter from the university.
thrill of excitement — common pattern with 'of'
For many children, the biggest thrill of the year is opening presents on Christmas morning.
It gave Tariq a real thrill to meet his favourite author at the book fair.
Bao could not hide the thrill in his voice when he talked about his new job across the city.
The children got a thrill out of watching the magician pull a rabbit from his hat.
- excitement
broader in meaning, less intense; can describe general energetic feeling
- rush
more informal; a sudden intense burst of excitement, often from danger or drugs
- boredom
the opposite feeling of having nothing interesting to do or experience
文法句型
thrill of (doing) something
give someone a thrill
get a thrill out of
用法筆記
Usually used in the singular. When used as a countable noun, it refers to a specific exciting experience rather than the general feeling.
常見錯誤
2. a sudden physical feeling, like a shiver or tingle, that is caused by a strong e
a sudden physical feeling, like a shiver or tingle, that is caused by a strong emotion such as fear, joy, or surprise
A thrill ran down Soraya's spine as the orchestra played the final notes of the symphony.
thrill ran down [body part] — describes the physical sensation
Caleb felt a strange thrill in his chest every time he thought about his upcoming trip to Thailand.
The frightening movie gave Apinya a cold thrill that made her pull the blanket tight around her shoulders.
Chiara felt a thrill of fear when she heard footsteps following her on the dark street.
- numbness
lack of physical sensation or feeling
文法句型
thrill + verb (run down, go through)
thrill of + emotion (fear, pleasure)
用法筆記
Sense 2 focuses on the body's physical reaction (shiver, tingle), while sense 1 focuses on the emotional feeling of happiness. The subject of the 'thrill' is usually a body part (spine, chest, nerves) or the sensation itself (a thrill + verb).
常見錯誤
❌ 'A thrill went through my body from the good news.' — sense 2 is specifically about physical sensations, not general excitement. Use sense 1 for 'thrill of excitement' as an emotion.
3. the excitement that people feel when they do dangerous or frightening things, es
the excitement that people feel when they do dangerous or frightening things, especially in sports or entertainment
Talia loves the thrill of skiing down the steepest mountain slopes in the Alps.
the thrill of [activity] — pattern for describing what causes the excitement
For some people, the thrill of a roller coaster comes from mixing fear with joy.
Sahil missed the thrill of racing his bicycle down the steep hill near his childhood home.
The video shows the thrills and spills of motorbike racing through city streets.
- adrenaline rush
informal; the sudden burst of energy from a dangerous situation
- kick
informal; a pleasurable thrill, as in 'get a kick out of something'
- safety
the condition of being free from danger or risk
文法句型
the thrill of + noun/-ing
thrill seeker
用法筆記
This sense is often used in fixed expressions like 'thrill seeker' (a person who enjoys dangerous activities) and 'thrills and spills' (the excitement and accidents of a sport). Unlike sense 1, this one emphasises risk and danger as the source of excitement.
常見錯誤
❌ 'I like the thrill of reading books.' — reading books is usually not dangerous; use sense 1 ('thrill of excitement') for enjoyable experiences that are not risky.
thrill — verb
- thrillpresent simple I / you / we / they
- thrills3rd person singular
- thrilling-ing form
- thrilledpast simple
1. to give someone a very strong feeling of happiness and excitement, especially by
to give someone a very strong feeling of happiness and excitement, especially by doing something surprising or skilful
The singer's performance thrilled the crowd at the stadium last night.
active: [person/performance] thrills [audience]
Liang's science project thrilled the judges with its clever and simple design.
thrill [someone] with [something]
The news that school would close early due to the snow thrilled the students.
Watching the baby take her first steps thrilled her parents and grandparents.
The young swimmer thrilled the world by breaking the Olympic record at her first Games.
- bore
to make someone lose interest or feel tired of something
文法句型
thrill someone (with something)
be thrilled (by/at/with something)
用法筆記
The passive form 'be thrilled' is very common and means 'to be very pleased.' It can be followed by 'with,' 'by,' 'at,' or a that-clause: 'I was thrilled with the results,' 'She was thrilled that you came.'
常見錯誤
2. to suddenly experience a strong feeling of excitement, joy, or emotion, especial
to suddenly experience a strong feeling of excitement, joy, or emotion, especially in response to something
Stephanie thrilled at the chance to study art in Florence for a whole year.
thrill at [something] — intransitive pattern with 'at'
The children thrilled with joy when they saw the first snowfall of the winter season.
thrill with [emotion]
Theo thrilled to the sound of the temple bells ringing across the valley at dawn.
Liang thrilled at the sight of the golden temple shining in the morning sunlight.
- dread
to feel great fear or worry about something that is going to happen
文法句型
thrill at/to something
用法筆記
This intransitive sense is less common in everyday speech than the transitive sense 1. It is found more often in literature and formal writing. The patterns 'thrill at' and 'thrill to' are both used, with 'thrill to' sounding slightly more poetic.