shock
1 Americannoun
verb (used with object)
noun
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a sudden and violent blow or impact; collision.
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a sudden or violent disturbance or commotion.
the shock of battle.
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a sudden or violent disturbance of the mind, emotions, or sensibilities.
The burglary was a shock to her sense of security. The book provided a shock, nothing more.
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the cause of such a disturbance.
The rebuke came as a shock.
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Pathology. a collapse of circulatory function, caused by severe injury, blood loss, or disease, and characterized by pallor, sweating, weak pulse, and very low blood pressure.
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the physiological effect produced by the passage of an electric current through the body.
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Informal. shocks, shock absorbers, especially in the suspension of an automobile.
verb (used with object)
verb (used without object)
noun
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a thick, bushy mass, as of hair.
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Also shock dog a dog with long, shaggy hair.
adjective
noun
adjective
noun
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a number of sheaves set on end in a field to dry
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a pile or stack of unthreshed corn
verb
verb
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to experience or cause to experience extreme horror, disgust, surprise, etc
the atrocities shocked us
she shocks easily
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to cause a state of shock in (a person)
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to come or cause to come into violent contact; jar
noun
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a sudden and violent jarring blow or impact
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something that causes a sudden and violent disturbance in the emotions
the shock of her father's death made her ill
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pathol a state of bodily collapse or near collapse caused by circulatory failure or sudden lowering of the blood pressure, as from severe bleeding, burns, fright, etc
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pathol pain and muscular spasm as the physical reaction to an electric current passing through the body
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An instance of the passage of an electric current through the body. The amount of injury caused by electric shock depends on the type and strength of the current, the length of time the current is applied, and the route the current takes once it enters the body.
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A life-threatening condition marked by a severe drop in blood pressure, resulting from serious injury or illness.
Usage
What is a basic definition of shock? A shock is a sudden, intense mental or physical impact. Shock is also the effect of having electricity run through the body. To shock someone means to intensely surprise or horrify someone. Shock has several other senses as a noun and a verb.The word shock often refers to a sudden mental disturbance that causes an intense emotion, usually surprise or horror. You might feel a shock when you see a failing grade on a test. The word shock can also refer to whatever causes this sudden surprise. The noun shocker and adjective shocking often refer to this sense of shock.
- Used in a sentence: It took Julie a few minutes to recover from the shock of seeing a dancing circus bear in her living room.
- Used in a sentence: I was shocked by my incredibly high phone bill.
- Used in a sentence: The springs absorbed most of the shock from colliding with the wall.
- Used in a sentence: The electrician barely survived the electric shock he got while working on the power lines.
- Used in a sentence: The squirrel was shocked by the cord while chewing on it.
Related Words
Shock, startle, paralyze, stun suggest a sudden, sharp surprise that affects one somewhat like a blow. Shock suggests a strong blow, as it were, to one's nerves, sentiments, sense of decency, etc.: The onlookers were shocked by the accident. Startle implies the sharp surprise of sudden fright: to be startled by a loud noise. Paralyze implies such a complete shock as to render one temporarily helpless: paralyzed with fear. Stun implies such a shock as bewilders or stupefies: stunned by the realization of an unpleasant truth.
Other Word Forms
- shockability noun
- shockable adjective
- shockedness noun
- shocker noun
- shocklike adjective
- unshockability noun
- unshockable adjective
Etymology
Origin of shock1
First recorded in 1300–50; Middle English shok, shocke, shok(k)e; cognate with Middle Low German, Low German scok, schok, all meaning “shock of grain, group of sixty,” German Schock “sixty”
Origin of shock1
First recorded in 1565–75; from Middle French choc “armed encounter,” noun derivative of choquer “to clash (in battle),” from Germanic (probably Frankish); compare Dutch schokken “to shake, jolt, jerk”
Origin of shock1
First recorded in 1815–20; special use of shock 2 (the hair being compared to a shock of wheat)
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.
But this should be seen as a strong vote of confidence in the Japanese economy, which has proven resilient to tariffs and global shocks.
She said "our role is even more important than it's ever been" but calls the pay "shocking".
From BBC
As my colleague Joe Light reports, “This year’s expected tariff shock to prices never arrived.”
From Barron's
Providing unskilled public work across all but fully urban districts, the scheme has become a backbone of rural livelihoods, cushioning demand during economic shocks.
From BBC
Gold and silver are both on track for the biggest annual gains since 1979, when inflation surged due to a global energy shock.
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.
