interesting
adjective
ˈin-tə-ˌre-
Did you know?
The Pronunciation and History of Interesting
There are a number of ways to say interesting. It can have three syllables or four; it can have an accent only on the first syllable, or it can also have a secondary accent on the "res"; the first "e" can get ignored, resulting in a second syllable of "tres" rhyming with dress; or the second "e" can be ignored, resulting in a syllable that sounds like terse. All of these various pronunciations are well-established and occur in the speech of educated, native speakers of English.
The word interesting originally meant "of concern"; it was a synonym of important. It comes from the verb interest, which in its original use meant "to induce or persuade to participate or engage." If you were interested in something, you were not willing to be a bystander; you felt the need to participate or engage.
Examples of interesting in a Sentence
Brian Mazique, Forbes.com, 4 May 2025
Welcome to Taste Test, where every week our critic Jonah Flicker explores the most buzzworthy and interesting whiskeys in the world.
—Jonah Flicker, Robb Report, 4 May 2025
April 16, 2023: DiCaprio is photographed dancing very closely with Cooper's ex Shayk during Coachella.
DiCaprio and Shayk at a Coachella after-party on April 16, 2023
Getty Images
This is interesting, considering DiCaprio and Cooper have been friends for decades, per the Daily Mail.
—Glamour, 4 May 2025
And just to keep things interesting, Kingston wasn’t quite done adventuring.
—Jasmine Baehr, FOXNews.com, 3 May 2025
See All Example Sentences for interesting
Cite this Entry
“Interesting.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/interesting. Accessed 9 May. 2025.
Copy CitationKids Definition
interesting
adjective
ˈint-ə-ˌrest-iŋ
Share