- present participle of stagger.
staggering
Americanadjective
adjective
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of staggering
Explanation
A staggering amount is an astonishing, astounding, stupefying amount. Anything staggering blows your mind. If you know that stagger means to stumble around uncertainly, then you're close to the meaning of staggering: this is a word for things that are so hard to believe you might fall down when you hear them. If the President gets shot, that's staggering news. If there's a major earthquake, that's staggering. Alien life contacting the Earth would be extremely staggering. Anything that knocks your socks off or makes your mind reel is staggering.
Vocabulary lists containing staggering
Tuck Everlasting
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Hatchet
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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.
By 1861, the Indigenous population had declined to an estimated 7% of its size before colonization, representing a staggering 93% reduction.
From Science Daily ● Oct. 14, 2026
A summer survey from the Guardian showed a staggering 95% of respondents think the US is in an affordability crisis.
From BBC ● Oct. 14, 2026
All of a sudden, Bass was a staggering champion lunging at a revived Raman, who swung and stung and ducked the way only a hungry up-and-comer can.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 14, 2026
The home’s staggering $67.5 million price tag works out to approximately $4,198 per square foot, according to the listing.
From MarketWatch ● Oct. 12, 2026
Each concussion threw him, staggering, and he watched in sick astonishment as the cracks grew to gaping rifts wide enough to swallow a man.
From "Strange the Dreamer" by Laini Taylor
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Get a wordDefinitions 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.
