adjective
also ee·ry ˈirē, ˈēr-, -ri
( -er/-est )
Etymology: Middle English (northern dialect) eri, from Old English earg cowardly, lazy, slow, wretched — more at argh
1. dialect Britain : affected with fear especially of the supernatural : frightened
when I sleep I dream, when I wake I'm eerie — Robert Burns
2. : unusual, unexpected, or unnatural to such a degree as to inspire fear : weird , frightening
it is an eerie experience to drive for miles through ghostly ranks of … cypress woods — American Guide Series: Florida
an uncomfortable and eerie stillness had settled over the piazza — Alan Moorehead
also : strange , mysterious , uncanny
blue and yellow flames that at night cast an eerie glow over the landscape — American Guide Series: Pennsylvania
the eeriest mystery in modern court records — a persistent riddle — Life
the clarinet sings, in its eerie , plaintive tone — Sara R. Watson
3. Scotland : gloomy , dismal
Synonyms: see weird