Dictionary.com
Thesaurus.com
Synonyms

shocking

American  
[shok-ing] / ˈʃɒk ɪŋ /

adjective

  1. causing intense surprise, disgust, horror, etc.

    Synonyms:
    appalling, startling, astounding, staggering

  2. very bad.

    shocking manners.
shocking British  
/ ˈʃɒkɪŋ /

adjective

  1. causing shock, horror, or disgust

  2. a vivid or garish shade of pink

  3. informal very bad or terrible

    shocking weather
"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Other Word Forms

  • shockingly adverb
  • shockingness noun
  • unshocking adjective

Etymology

Origin of shocking

First recorded in 1685–95; shock 1 + -ing 2

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.

It was a shocking attack on European democracies.

From Slate • Apr. 9, 2026

“I don’t really like to talk about it because it was a very shocking business,” he finally admits.

From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 8, 2026

Some of the revelations in the reports are shocking even to the jaded.

From MarketWatch • Apr. 7, 2026

John Robinson Block got a shocking phone call from his twin brother, Allan, in 2023.

From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 5, 2026

Federal Reserve took the shocking and unprecedented step of buying bad subprime mortgage bonds directly from the banks.

From "The Big Short" by Michael Lewis

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.