stun
Americanverb (used with object)
-
stuns,
present (3rd person singular)
-
stunned,
past participle, past
-
stunning
present participle
-
to deprive of consciousness or strength by or as if by a blow, fall, etc..
The blow to his jaw stunned him for a moment.
-
Her wit stunned the audience.
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The world was stunned by the attempted assassination.
-
to daze or bewilder by noise.
- Synonyms:
- stupefy
verb (used without object)
-
stuns,
present (3rd person singular)
-
stunned,
past participle, past
-
stunning
present participle
noun
-
the act of stunning.
-
the condition of being stunned.
verb
-
to render unconscious, as by a heavy blow or fall
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to shock or overwhelm
-
to surprise or astound
noun
Synonym Usage
See shock 1.
Other Word Forms
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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stunsimple
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stunssimple
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have stunnedperfect
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has stunnedperfect
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am stunningprogressive
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are stunningprogressive
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is stunningprogressive
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have been stunningperfect progressive
-
has been stunningperfect progressive
Past
-
stunnedsimple
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had stunnedperfect
-
was stunningprogressive
-
were stunningprogressive
-
had been stunningperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of stun
First recorded in 1250–1300; Middle English stonen, stunen (verb), from Old French estoner “to shake, make resound”; see astonish
Explanation
To stun is to knock unconscious or to shock. So getting hit in the head with a softball will stun you, but hearing that your favorite band is playing at the prom will also stun you. If your cat catches a mouse, it may only stun the little animal and give you a chance to set it free. Being knocked hard enough in the head is generally what it takes to physically stun a person. It's more common for something that's astonishing to stun you, whether it's hearing terrible news or seeing something amazingly beautiful, like the northern lights or the Grand Canyon. Stun, in fact, shares a root with astonish.
Vocabulary lists containing stun
"My Favorite Chaperone," Vocabulary from the short story
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Beam Me Up: Talking About Star Trek
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"My Favorite Chaperone" by Jean Davies Okimoto
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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.
See Examples For:
The security forces used tear gas and stun grenades.
From BBC ● Aug. 12, 2026
Sterling Nasa proceeded to stun composer-conductor Justin Hurwitz and the 2,000-person audience with his flawless, impromptu performance.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 3, 2026
An AFP photographer saw law enforcement use stun grenades to try disperse the crowds near Madison Square Garden.
From Barron's ● Jun. 11, 2026
One dog that didn’t bark at the conference, and continues to stun by its silence, is that of a wealth or asset tax.
From MarketWatch ● May 7, 2026
Then they stun themselves against clear windowpanes and die, fatly baffled in the sun.
From "The God of Small Things" by Arundhati Roy
She always stuns on the red carpet with who she is sort of making fun of.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 6, 2026
Saylor has been unflaggingly bullish, even as Bitcoin’s decline stuns investors.
From Barron's ● Nov. 24, 2025
The outreach from Joan at first stuns him.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 2, 2025
REPORT: Anisimova stuns Sabalenka to reach Wimbledon finalAvailable to UK users only.
From BBC ● Jul. 10, 2025
She don’t kill that spider, but she stuns it.
From "The Teacher’s Funeral" by Richard Peck
When I dropped my daughter off at a three-day, two-night sports camp this summer, I was stunned to see other parents—one with a ladder—elaborately decorating the front doors of their campers’ rooms.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 20, 2026
But when they do, it’s like watching a magic trick play out before your eyes, leaving you so stunned you’re stammering, unable to utter even a single “How?”
From Salon ● Aug. 17, 2026
Stenhousemuir, who stunned Motherwell in extra time, will host last season's Scottish Premiership runners up Hearts.
From BBC ● Aug. 16, 2026
The shark made a few circles, its fins at times breaching the water’s surface as stunned fishermen looked on.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 15, 2026
When Rocky Crandell heard about the change in earthquakes, he was momentarily stunned.
From "Mountain of Fire" by Rebecca E. F. Barone
Celtic take a huge step towards the Champions League as two stunning Camilo Duran strikes help carve out a commanding first-leg play-off lead against LASK.
From BBC ● Aug. 19, 2026
Habaneros grumble that the money he spent turning old palaces into stunning hotels -- now empty -- was wasted.
From Barron's ● Aug. 18, 2026
Big Bend, bordering Mexico in West Texas, features volcanic dikes, dinosaur bones and stunning canyon views.
From Salon ● Aug. 18, 2026
Now that the cattle are gone, she’s seeing all kinds of native plants, such as coastal strawberries, Yerba Buena Blue-eyed grass and the Douglas iris with their stunning lavender petals.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 16, 2026
You'd think an ultra-attractive mother like mine would understand why my appearance was hampered by my Frida Kahlo eyebrows, coupled with my inability to paint stunning self-portraits of said eyebrows.
From "Americanized" by Sara Saedi
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.
