Synonyms

stunned

American

[stuhnd] / stʌnd /

adjective

deprived of consciousness or strength.

When the fish came close enough, they would get bopped on the head with a club or an axe by the fishermen, who would then drag the stunned fish into the boat.
showing or reflecting astonishment, shock, or bewilderment.

A stunned spectator managed a "You're kidding?" but nothing more.
The curtain fell to a stunned silence, and then rapturous applause and hysterical laughter.

verb

the simple past tense and past participle of stun.

Other Word Forms

unstunned adjective

Etymology

Origin of stunned

stun ( def. ) + -ed ² ( def. )

Explanation

When you're stunned, you're thrown for a loop: either by shocking news or a blow to the head. You can be stunned a few different ways, but they all involve a state of confusion. If your mom won the lottery, you'd be stunned. Others might be stunned if their favorite TV show was canceled. Some people are stunned by good news that is kind of amazing, like a NASA flight to Mars. On the other hand, getting whacked in the head can leave you stunned. Getting the wind knocked out of you will do the same.

Keep Reading on Vocabulary.com

Vocabulary lists containing stunned

"All Summer in a Day" by Ray Bradbury

Looking to grow your vocabulary? Check out this interactive, curated word list from our team of English language specialists at Vocabulary.com – one of over 17,000 lists we've built to help learners worldwide!

Ghost Boys

Interested in learning more words like this one? Our team at Vocabulary.com has got you covered! You can review flashcards, quiz yourself, practice spelling, and more – and it's all completely free to use!

"Earthquake"

Want to remember this word for good? Start your learning journey today with our library of interactive, themed word lists built by the experts at Vocabulary.com – we'll help you make the most of your study time!

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.

Northampton looked like scoring in every attack and Tom Lockett and Josh Kemeny stunned the home crowd with quick tries to put last year's beaten finalists 28-7 up.

From BBC • Apr. 10, 2026

"When I first saw the experimental data, I was stunned," said Nevidomskyy, a member of the Rice Advanced Materials Institute and the Rice Center for Quantum Materials.

From Science Daily • Apr. 10, 2026

The latest windfall is so generous it has stunned even Wall Street, where the stock prices of the private health-insurance giants involved in the program rocketed in response.

From MarketWatch • Apr. 8, 2026

When Goodyear examined the sample, he was stunned: Instead of melting, it became sturdy and durable without losing its flexibility and elasticity.

From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 4, 2026

He lay there for a moment, stunned but not hurt.

From "The Undead Fox of Deadwood Forest" by Aubrey Hartman

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023