Gripping
What it means
So engaging or exciting that attention remains fixed.
Reach for it when praising a story or presentation that holds attention with unusual force
The gripping documentary kept the audience silent through the credits.
Words to choose between 7
| playful | |
|---|---|
| everyday |
|
| warm | |
| professional | |
| literary |
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playful
Fits when informal book praise should stress compulsive reading
Careful Unputdownable applies poorly to film or speech and is unsuitable for measured criticism.
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everyday
Fits when curiosity and discovery matter more than plot tension
Careful Fascinating can describe one fact and does not promise sustained narrative hold.
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warm
Fits when sustained interest draws the audience inward
Careful Absorbing is calmer and may lack danger, urgency, or suspense.
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professional
Fits when strong interest or reasoning makes attention feel necessary
Careful Compelling can praise an argument without the tension or excitement of gripping storytelling.
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professional
suspenseful
Fits when uncertainty about what happens next drives attention
Careful Suspenseful is too narrow when fascination comes from ideas or character.
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literary
enthralling
Fits when delight and fascination feel almost spellbinding
Careful Enthralling is ornate and may oversell a restrained documentary.
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literary
Fits when attention feels completely fixed from moment to moment
Careful Calling a merely informative account riveting exaggerates its intensity.
Opposites 3
- dull
- tedious
- forgettable
Common phrases 3
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gripping story
The witness told a gripping story without embellishing the danger.
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gripping account
Her gripping account kept the hearing room silent.
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gripping finale
A gripping finale resolved the rivalry without an easy victory.
Definitions and examples are written for this site. How words are chosen Recording: Vealhurl, Southern England accent, from Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0 Updated