culture shock

American  

noun

culture shocks plural

1. a state of bewilderment and distress experienced by an individual who is suddenly exposed to a new, strange, or foreign social and cultural environment.

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culture shock British  

noun

1. sociol the feelings of isolation, rejection, etc, experienced when one culture is brought into sudden contact with another, as when a primitive tribe is confronted by modern civilization

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culture shock Idioms  

1. A state of confusion and anxiety experienced by someone upon encountering an alien environment. For example, It's not just jet lag—it's the culture shock of being in a new country. This term was first used by social scientists to describe, for example, the experience of a person moving from the country to a big city. It is now used more loosely, as in the example. [Late 1930s]

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Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• culture-shocked
  adjective

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• culture shocks
  plural

Etymology

Origin of culture shock

First recorded in 1955–60

Example Sentences

Tristan Fender admits it was a "culture shock" when he moved to the city from Germany last year.

From BBC • Feb. 25, 2026

It was a huge and, for many Imagineers, unwelcome culture shock.

From The Wall Street Journal • Jan. 10, 2026

Edward, in his all-black leather outfit with his wild hair, is a visual culture shock, especially in comparison to the pastel world of the burbs he moves into.

From Salon • Nov. 26, 2025

It was the biggest culture shock of my life.

From The Wall Street Journal • Oct. 30, 2025

Another malady suffered by the Berkeley transplants was severe culture shock.

From "Big Science" by Michael Hiltzik