electric shock
Americannoun
noun
Etymology
Origin of electric shock
First recorded in 1940–45
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.
Nets have been placed over certain streets; in previous years metal kite strings have fallen on to electricity wires giving an electric shock to anyone holding them - and causing the wires to short circuit.
From BBC • Feb. 7, 2026
These included a food blender which emitted smoke and a hairstyler that could cause an electric shock.
From BBC • Dec. 20, 2025
It was "an electric shock, a wake-up call about what changing our diets can mean for intensive animal farming and for deforestation", said the 63-year-old retiree, who lives in Ermenonville, an hour from Paris.
From Barron's • Oct. 30, 2025
On doorsteps, put down mats that cause a mild electric shock when a bear steps on them; they’re called “unwelcome mats.”
From Los Angeles Times • Mar. 9, 2025
His master’s voice acted on Buck like an electric shock, He sprang to his feet and ran up the bank ahead of the men to the point of his previous departure.
From "The Call of the Wild" by Jack London
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.
