v. 1
To hurl; to throw; to cast.
v. 2
To suddenly excite someone, or to give someone great pleasure; to (figuratively) electrify; to experience such a sensation.
n. 1
A trembling or quivering, especially one caused by emotion; a frisson.
n. 2
A cause of sudden excitement; a kick.

Related words

Word family: thrillfest thrillorama thrilly
Phrases: thrill seeker
Is a kind of: incite

Forms

Plural: thrills → frissons, shudders, tingles, shivers…
Past participle: thrilled
e.g. thrilled → excited, electrified, touched, fired…

Choose the right word

Thrill or Quiver?

Thrill is applied to a pervasive movement felt rather than seen; as, the nerves thrill with delight; quiver is similarly used, but suggests somewhat more of outward manifestation.

J. C. Fernald, English Synonyms and Antonyms (1914)

Example sentences

exalt The party will continue to exalt their hero.
exhilarate A Christmas present like that will certainly exhilarate him.
throb The bright light makes my head throb.

Popularity over time

Word	1850 → 2019	Trend
thrill		rising
exalt		rising
inebriate		falling
exhilarate		steady
throb		rising

Use in printed books, per decade from 1850 to 2019.

By length

4 letters: fire², move¹, send¹, kick¹, rush¹, bang¹, boot¹, stir¹, jerk¹, toss¹, hurl¹, whet¹
5 letters: touch¹, shake¹, chill¹, flush¹, fling¹, rouse¹, heave¹, throb¹, exalt²
6 letters: charge¹, strike¹, kindle², awaken³, excite², tickle², shiver², arouse², tingle², quiver², hurtle², charre
7 letters: provoke², animate³, vibrate², shudder², flutter², tremble², quicken², enliven³, frisson, beatify⁴
9 letters: stimulate³, electrify⁴, galvanize³, galvanise, inebriate⁴
10 letters: intoxicate⁴, exhilarate⁴

The small number after each word is its number of syllables (fire² = 2 syllables).