tantalizing : Dictionary / Wörterbuch (BEOLINGUS, TU Chemnitz)

English Dictionary: tantalizing	by the DICT Development Group
2 results for tantalizing
From WordNet (r) 3.0 (2006) [wn]:
tantalizing adj arousing desire or expectation for something unattainable or mockingly out of reach; "a tantalizing taste of success" Synonym(s): tantalizing, tantalising very pleasantly inviting; "a tantalizing aroma"; "a tempting repast" Synonym(s): tantalizing, tantalising, tempting
From Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913) [web1913]:
Tantalize \Tan"ta*lize\, v. t. [imp. & p. p. {Tantalized}; p. pr. & vb. n. {Tantalizing}.] [From {Tantalus}: cf. F. tantaliser.] To tease or torment by presenting some good to the view and exciting desire, but continually frustrating the expectations by keeping that good out of reach; to tease; to torment. Thy vain desires, at strife Within themselves, have tantalized thy life. --Dryden. Syn: To tease; vex; irritate; provoke. Usage: {Tantalize}, {Disappoint}. To disappoint is literally to do away with what was (or was taken to be) appointed; hence the peculiar pain from hopes thus dashed to the ground. To tantalize, a much stronger term, describes a most distressing form of disappointment, as in the case of Tantalus, the Phrygian king. To tantalize is to visit with the bitterest disappointment -- to torment by exciting hopes or expectations which can never be realized.