EERIE Synonyms: 53 Similar and Opposite Words

Q: How is the word 'eerie' distinct from other similar adjectives?

The words uncanny and weird are common synonyms of eerie . While all three words mean "mysteriously strange or fantastic," eerie suggests an uneasy or fearful consciousness that mysterious and malign powers are at work. // an eerie calm preceded the bombing raid

Q: When is it sensible to use 'uncanny' instead of 'eerie'?

While in some cases nearly identical to eerie , uncanny implies disquieting strangeness or mysteriousness. // an uncanny resemblance between total strangers

Q: When can 'weird' be used instead of 'eerie'?

The words weird and eerie are synonyms, but do differ in nuance. Specifically, weird may imply an unearthly or supernatural strangeness or it may stress peculiarity or oddness. // weird creatures from another world

eerie

adjective

ˈir-ē

variants also eery

Definition of eerie

as in haunting

fearfully and mysteriously strange or fantastic eerie noises would occasionally come from locked rooms in the castle

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How is the word eerie distinct from other similar adjectives?

The words uncanny and weird are common synonyms of eerie. While all three words mean "mysteriously strange or fantastic," eerie suggests an uneasy or fearful consciousness that mysterious and malign powers are at work.

an eerie calm preceded the bombing raid

When is it sensible to use uncanny instead of eerie?

While in some cases nearly identical to eerie, uncanny implies disquieting strangeness or mysteriousness.

an uncanny resemblance between total strangers

When can weird be used instead of eerie?

The words weird and eerie are synonyms, but do differ in nuance. Specifically, weird may imply an unearthly or supernatural strangeness or it may stress peculiarity or oddness.

weird creatures from another world

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Recent Examples of eerie Our aim was to make an eerie, complex and increasingly compelling narrative podcast with zero creative restrictions. — Todd Spangler, Variety, 13 Oct. 2026 The Alhambra Orchestra and Greater Miami Youth Symphony team up for a multimedia Halloween concert filled with movie themes and eerie classics. — Mike Hamersly, Miami Herald, 12 Oct. 2026 Full of eerie coincidences, noir elements, and chilling imagery, Diabolique still makes for a good fright. — Air Mail, 10 Oct. 2026 Its best parts have a grandeur that surpasses its industrial settings and gets at something eerie and transcendent. — Alison Willmore, Vulture, 7 Oct. 2026 See All Example Sentences for eerie

Recent Examples of Synonyms for eerie

Adjective

The vestiges of his fading memory flash by with a haunting plainness, the melancholy of all this Americana and the sadness of a mind ravaged by time strike the viewer plainly at the end of this maximalist piece of life-writing.

— Stephanie Wambugu, Vulture, 12 Oct. 2026
The film’s musical score, by Damon Albarn of Blur, has a haunting Bowie-like party-on-the-abyss shimmer.

— Owen Gleiberman, Variety, 6 Oct. 2026

Definition of haunting

Adjective

Palmer doesn’t appear until the last 15 minutes, but her creepy performance is indelible.

— Los Angeles Times, Los Angeles Times, 19 Oct. 2026
As her son Rauri, Murphy plays a creepy, brooding university dropout whom audiences also can’t help sympathize with.

— Isabelle Farina, Variety, 18 Oct. 2026

Definition of creepy

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eerie

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“Eerie.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/eerie. Accessed 21 Oct. 2026.

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Synonyms of eerie

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