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
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
Read More
Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of appall
Leo’s appalled; Geno looks forward to eating.
—
Mary Ann Grossmann, Twin Cities, 7 Sep. 2025
Trump’s victories against the bureaucracy have appalled many Democrats, though none have much of a theory on how to put Humpty Dumpty back together.
—Ben Smith, semafor.com, 2 Sep. 2025
Bob the Drag Queen tells EW he was appalled by the way ANTM stars treated Isis King on cycle 11.
—EW.com, 1 Sep. 2025
Unsurprisingly, their posts sparked strong reactions from commenters — some of whom were appalled by the gap in their ages, and others who came to Stomatuk and Justin’s defense.
—Luke Chinman, People.com, 29 Aug. 2025
Sotheby’s specialists were appalled by the new fees.
—Sam Knight, New Yorker, 25 Aug. 2025
The Facebook post quickly became a battleground between commenters who were appalled at the concept of euthanizing healthy pets for animal feed, and those who applauded the zoo for its method of maintaining a practical food supply for its animals.
—Alana Wise, NPR, 6 Aug. 2025
Enid is appalled at this brutal treatment of Thing and crowns him an honorary wolf-pack member.
—Jessica M. Goldstein, Vulture, 6 Aug. 2025
An Egyptian math teacher, appalled at this attitude, began hounding him.
—John Carlisle, Freep.com, 31 May 2025
Mary Ann Grossmann, Twin Cities, 7 Sep. 2025
Trump’s victories against the bureaucracy have appalled many Democrats, though none have much of a theory on how to put Humpty Dumpty back together.
—Ben Smith, semafor.com, 2 Sep. 2025
Bob the Drag Queen tells EW he was appalled by the way ANTM stars treated Isis King on cycle 11.
—EW.com, 1 Sep. 2025
Unsurprisingly, their posts sparked strong reactions from commenters — some of whom were appalled by the gap in their ages, and others who came to Stomatuk and Justin’s defense.
—Luke Chinman, People.com, 29 Aug. 2025
Sotheby’s specialists were appalled by the new fees.
—Sam Knight, New Yorker, 25 Aug. 2025
The Facebook post quickly became a battleground between commenters who were appalled at the concept of euthanizing healthy pets for animal feed, and those who applauded the zoo for its method of maintaining a practical food supply for its animals.
—Alana Wise, NPR, 6 Aug. 2025
Enid is appalled at this brutal treatment of Thing and crowns him an honorary wolf-pack member.
—Jessica M. Goldstein, Vulture, 6 Aug. 2025
An Egyptian math teacher, appalled at this attitude, began hounding him.
—John Carlisle, Freep.com, 31 May 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for appall
Verb
-
All of this terrified his father, Charlie, a former cop who had a premonition that something would go wrong.—
Seth Wickersham,
The Atlantic,
8 Sep. 2025
-
Lewis, the five-star recruit and the people’s choice, looked good handing off and terrified on obvious passing downs.—
Sean Keeler,
Denver Post,
7 Sep. 2025
Verb
-
Orientation, such as whether the cabochons appear as diamonds or squares when viewed from room entrances, can also affect how the flooring pattern is perceived.—
Kristina McGuirk,
Better Homes & Gardens,
1 Sep. 2025
-
Viewers on YouTube were floored by the dad's reaction and praised his transformation.—
Soo Kim,
MSNBC Newsweek,
1 Sep. 2025
Verb
-
Judy Hernandez’ husband Raul, a co-founder of the community group the Resurrection Project, dismissed those plans as a political stunt geared to create fear and frighten Spanish-speaking people.—
Tess Kenny,
Chicago Tribune,
5 Sep. 2025
-
Many of us are conditioned to think that our ultimate goal in life is to be with someone, so much so, that the mere thought of being alone frightens us.—
Mark Travers,
Forbes.com,
2 Sep. 2025
Verb
-
Yet, at the same time, automation scares people.—
Arthur Azizov,
Forbes.com,
8 Sep. 2025
-
Parents, scared by the specter of brain damage, are reluctant to let their kids play tackle football.—
Seth Wickersham,
The Atlantic,
8 Sep. 2025
Verb
-
Apparently, this will shock no one, everybody lately wants to scream.—
Christopher Borrelli,
Chicago Tribune,
3 Sep. 2025
-
In 2019, after massive layoffs and lost sales, the company shocked Wall Street by writing down the value of marquee brands Oscar Mayer and Kraft by $15 billion.—
Alina Selyukh,
NPR,
2 Sep. 2025
Verb
-
Locals were disgusted with city leadership’s inept handling of the crisis.—
Chadd Scott,
Forbes.com,
16 Aug. 2025
-
The woman was disgusted by the comments and left the room, according to the outlets, citing the records.—
Liam Quinn,
People.com,
8 Aug. 2025
Verb
-
The camera cuts between Dennis, who’s sobbing, and Roman, who’s horrified, processing Dennis’ betrayal.—
Barry Levitt,
Time,
5 Sep. 2025
-
However, the rest of the AI industry is likely horrified by the settlement, which advocates had suggested could set an alarming precedent that could financially ruin emerging AI companies like Anthropic.—
Ashley Belanger,
ArsTechnica,
5 Sep. 2025
Verb
-
Others were offended by the variety of items in the dish.—
Michael Nied,
PEOPLE,
4 Sep. 2025
-
Of community referrals, 81% did not offend at all.—
Everett Eaton,
jsonline.com,
3 Sep. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Appall.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/appall. Accessed 9 Sep. 2025.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share