eerie

Probably the closest synonym for eerie is spooky.

These words are usually used to describe an atmosphere or place that’s scary in a subtle way—not due to obvious danger but rather to a perceived uncanny quality that’s perhaps supernatural and sinister (evil). A classic example of a place described as eerie is a haunted house.

Similar words include creepy, chilling, foreboding, menacing, and ominous. These all suggest a frightening quality, but, unlike eerie and spooky, don’t imply that there is anything otherworldly about it.

You can describe an eerie place as giving you the creeps, creeping you out, or inspiring a sense of dread. 

Sometimes the best way to indicate that a place is eerie is to show instead of tell: when describing it, instead of using the word eerie, describe the things that actually make it eerie, like the strange sounds coming from the attic and the painting of a girl whose eyes seem to follow you around the room.

An eerie silence is a silence that seems too quiet—one that suggests something bad is going to happen. An eerie silence isn’t necessarily entirely silent—the breeze might be blowing in the background, for example—but it is lacking some of the sounds you might expect to hear normally. A forest without any birds singing (at a time when they normally would be) might be described as eerily silent.

Words to describe an eerie silence include strange and unnatural.

Eerie describes things that are subtly frightening due to seeming strange or unnatural. The opposite of an eerie atmosphere is one that’s familiar or ordinary in a way that’s comforting, welcoming, calming, or reassuring.

It can be spelled either way, but eerie is much more common.

Eerie is used to suggest unnaturalness and creepiness.

Here are some examples of eerie in a sentence:

• The house was so eerie once we’d moved all our stuff out—like it was a different place altogether. 
• At dawn, there was an eerie silence over the lake, and the strange mist made it even eerier. 
• Walking among the mannequins in the abandoned department was too eerie for me.