dismay, appall, horrify, daunt mean to unnerve or deter by arousing fear, apprehension, or aversion.
dismay implies that one is disconcerted and at a loss as to how to deal with something.
dismayed at the size of the job
appall implies that one is faced with that which perturbs, confounds, or shocks.
I am appalled by your behavior
horrify stresses a reaction of horror or revulsion.
was horrified by such wanton cruelty
daunt suggests a cowing, disheartening, or frightening in a venture requiring courage.
a cliff that would daunt the most intrepid climber
Examples of horrify in a Sentence
The details of the crime horrified the nation.
They were horrified by the movie's violence.
Recent Examples on the WebPalestinians were horrified by the Hamas attacks, but also bothered by the sense that they were expected to condemn them, and afraid of Israel’s response to come.—Kate Linthicum, Los Angeles Times, 24 Apr. 2024 There in the audience, looking horrified, sit her conservative mother (Sonia Dhillon Tully) and Nani (Usha Uppal).—Peter Debruge, Variety, 14 Mar. 2024 The 25-year-old Priscilla actress perfectly balances Jessie’s wide-eyed naivety and tenaciousness, as the young journalist is horrified by the violence but unable to look away.—Devan Coggan, EW.com, 12 Apr. 2024 The French were horrified and retaliated ruthlessly, shooting hundreds of Algerian men without trial.—Gal Beckerman, The Atlantic, 28 Mar. 2024 Her character Hanna enjoys a summer affair with a teenage boy (David Kross), who some years later is a law student horrified to find his brief love is now on trial for her war crimes as a Nazi guard at Auschwitz.
14.—Brian Truitt, USA TODAY, 4 Mar. 2024 The Cesar Chavez Foundation worked to vaccinate farmworkers, Andres Chavez said, and Kennedy Jr.’s views on vaccines horrified him.—Benjamin Oreskes, Los Angeles Times, 29 Mar. 2024 Fans didn’t have to wait long for the next big bad, as David Morrissey brought one of Kirkman and Adlard’s most iconic villains, the Governor, from paneled page menace to horrifying small-screen life.—Josh Wigler, The Hollywood Reporter, 29 Mar. 2024 When gunshots rang out at the parade moments after the team finished speaking on stage, Mike was horrified.—Alex Ross, Peoplemag, 2 Mar. 2024
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'horrify.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
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