- a variation of appall.
appal
Americanverb (used with object)
verb
Etymology
Origin of appal
C14: from Old French appalir to turn pale
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
Ruth Jones, Labour MP for Newport West, added that the situation "continued to appal".
From BBC ● Nov. 20, 2022
The wild child of rock n' roll had found a whole new generation to appal.
From BBC ● Oct. 28, 2022
Then, the plan held, overreaction from these groups would appal “normies”, or normal, average Americans.
From The Guardian ● Oct. 15, 2018
"That a man can be targeted when he is attending a hospital to visit his wife and newly born son continues to appal all right-minded members of society."
From BBC ● Dec. 6, 2013
Think over all thou might'st have been, Contrast it then with all thou art: A retrospect so dark and keen May well appal thy shuddering heart.
From Trevethlan (Vol 3 of 3) A Cornish Story. by William Davy Watson
Zimmer had been appalled by Harvard’s actions after the attacks and troubled by the ensuing antisemitism on campus, said people who know him, a time when one of his daughters had been a student there.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 11, 2026
The Yosemite NPS Employees Union said it was "appalled" by the ceding of public lands for private interests, calling the proposed trade "antithetical to what we stand for" as stewards of the park.
From Barron's ● Aug. 28, 2026
Kris is a queer filmmaker taking on the task of reclaiming the slasher horror film-within-the-film, “Camp Miasma,” rebooting it for the queer community to no longer be appalled by.
From Salon ● Aug. 27, 2026
He also tried to subtly rebut concerns among those who had watched the debate and were appalled by Graham’s gaffe.
From Slate ● Aug. 25, 2026
One more or less appalled New York writer that year noted that “if Stanford had not been using a clumsily-built Western shell they might have won.”
From "The Boys in the Boat: Nine Americans and Their Epic Quest for Gold at the 1936 Berlin Olympics" by Daniel James Brown
"What makes this reckless behaviour even more appalling is that in some cases it is being done for social media likes regardless of the potentially devastating impact it might have on innocent people and themselves."
From BBC ● Aug. 17, 2026
Judge John Morris KC told Nabizada he had committed an "appalling betrayal of trust" during sentencing after he was found unanimously guilty at a High Court trial last month.
From BBC ● Aug. 11, 2026
Prosecutors said Bush ran a "shambolic and chaotic" operation at the Hessle Road premises and his "appalling" offending had caused "extreme emotional pain, anguish and upset".
From BBC ● Aug. 5, 2026
"At that point, I told the people with me let's go there for work... let's try our luck too," she added, saying she wanted to leave for Europe because she works "under appalling conditions".
From Barron's ● Jul. 31, 2026
Then I noticed Ang Dorje, standing alone in the appalling wind, sobbing inconsolably over the loss of Rob.
From "Into Thin Air" by Jon Krakauer
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
