variants
also appal
as in to terrify
to cause an unpleasant surprise for
conditions inside the house overrun with cats simply appalled animal control officers
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of appall
Spielberg imagined it as a noise that has the power to appall.
—
David Denby, Vulture, 3 July 2025
Still, there is plenty here that should appall both Democrats and Republicans.
—The Editorial Board, Chicago Tribune, 11 Apr. 2025
Dismay or appall you, sure, but never surprise you.
—Patt Morrison, Los Angeles Times, 31 Dec. 2024
That kind of appalls me to think that people need not expect that of themselves.
—David Marchese Photograph By Mamadi Doumbouya, New York Times, 15 Feb. 2024
What appalls him now is a lack of accountability in Netanyahu’s government.
—David Remnick, The New Yorker, 14 Jan. 2024
Kunzig: Alejandra, the weather this year kept finding fresh ways to appall us.
—Susan Goldberg, National Geographic, 9 Dec. 2021
The whiteness of the fantasy village will appall some — including, presumably, those who protested Gelman’s leadership of The Wing, that women-only co-working operation whose own workforce was notoriously segregated by race.
—Grace Lavery, Curbed, 20 Apr. 2022
Are there some whose only aim is to appall and disturb?
—Mark Shanahan, BostonGlobe.com, 2 Dec. 2022
David Denby, Vulture, 3 July 2025
Still, there is plenty here that should appall both Democrats and Republicans.
—The Editorial Board, Chicago Tribune, 11 Apr. 2025
Dismay or appall you, sure, but never surprise you.
—Patt Morrison, Los Angeles Times, 31 Dec. 2024
That kind of appalls me to think that people need not expect that of themselves.
—David Marchese Photograph By Mamadi Doumbouya, New York Times, 15 Feb. 2024
What appalls him now is a lack of accountability in Netanyahu’s government.
—David Remnick, The New Yorker, 14 Jan. 2024
Kunzig: Alejandra, the weather this year kept finding fresh ways to appall us.
—Susan Goldberg, National Geographic, 9 Dec. 2021
The whiteness of the fantasy village will appall some — including, presumably, those who protested Gelman’s leadership of The Wing, that women-only co-working operation whose own workforce was notoriously segregated by race.
—Grace Lavery, Curbed, 20 Apr. 2022
Are there some whose only aim is to appall and disturb?
—Mark Shanahan, BostonGlobe.com, 2 Dec. 2022
Recent Examples of Synonyms for appall
Verb
-
These are the hallmarks of the Alien franchise, which have remained mostly consistent across the seven movies (plus two vacuous Alien vs. Predator crossovers) that have kept those terrifying Xenomorphs coming back to our screens every decade since the original premiered in 1979.—
Judy Berman,
Time,
5 Aug. 2025
-
Though some residents are not keen on seeing alligators in the wild, the animals are just as terrified of humans as humans are of them.—
Fort Worth Star-Telegram,
Fort Worth Star-Telegram,
2 Aug. 2025
Verb
-
Some things still floor him about the guy who took his money.—
Mike Hendricks,
Kansas City Star,
14 Aug. 2025
-
The daters Julie Nguyen works with are more likely to be floored by the laziness, spelling errors, and sheer audacity of the people on the other end.—
Angela Haupt,
Time,
11 Aug. 2025
Verb
-
Most give up halfway, frightened by the warnings of those below.—
Sudhir Gupta,
Forbes.com,
11 Aug. 2025
-
While the notion might frighten fans who have Thursday nights perpetually blocked off on their calendars, shorter episodes could prove beneficial in giving the Critical Role founders a little bit of a break.—
Dana Reboe,
Rolling Stone,
7 Aug. 2025
Verb
-
Some, scared off by the complexity of picking a policy and by the price tags, tumble over the edge and go without insurance in a health system where the rate for an emergency room visit can be thousands, if not tens of thousands, of dollars.—
Elisabeth Rosenthal,
Miami Herald,
12 Aug. 2025
-
Effectively scaring a bear also reinforces the person as dominant in an encounter, so the bear learns to avoid people.—
Staff report,
Hartford Courant,
9 Aug. 2025
Verb
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His mother, Melissa, was shocked that the animal attacked despite the large crowd of people.—
Gabrielle Rockson,
People.com,
8 Aug. 2025
-
In October of 2023, Nascar first announced iRacing’s acquisition of the rights to the new video game title, shocking the world after Motorsport Games’ demise.—
Joseph Wolkin,
Forbes.com,
8 Aug. 2025
Verb
-
So the Chargers circled back to San Diego, winners on the books but still losers to a pocket of former fans disgusted by their exit.—
Jay Paris,
Forbes.com,
22 July 2025
-
Working-class voters grew disenchanted with, and then disgusted by, elite, wealthy liberals.—
Michael Catanzaro,
The Orlando Sentinel,
21 July 2025
Verb
-
If denim ad copy is aimed at reflecting America back to itself, some were certainly horrified by their reflection.—
Anna Kaufman,
USA Today,
30 July 2025
-
The murders horrified the nation, resulting in numerous documentaries attempting to unspool the strange and unsettling tragedy.—
EW.com,
EW.com,
12 July 2025
Verb
-
Advertisement Where things get subtle is with unpleasant posts, especially ones that anger or offend you.—
Noah Giansiracusa,
Time,
7 Aug. 2025
-
South Park premiered Season 27 on July 23, mocking Trump in bed with Satan, which seemingly offended the White House resident.—
Armando Tinoco,
Deadline,
5 Aug. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Appall.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/appall. Accessed 20 Aug. 2025.
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