appall

variants also appal

Synonym Chooser

How does the verb appall contrast with its synonyms?

Some common synonyms of appall are daunt, dismay, and horrify. While all these words mean "to unnerve or deter by arousing fear, apprehension, or aversion," appall implies that one is faced with that which perturbs, confounds, or shocks.

I am appalled by your behavior

When can daunt be used instead of appall?

The meanings of daunt and appall largely overlap; however, daunt suggests a cowing, disheartening, or frightening in a venture requiring courage.

a cliff that would daunt the most intrepid climber

When is it sensible to use dismay instead of appall?

The words dismay and appall can be used in similar contexts, but dismay implies that one is disconcerted and at a loss as to how to deal with something.

dismayed at the size of the job

In what contexts can horrify take the place of appall?

In some situations, the words horrify and appall are roughly equivalent. However, horrify stresses a reaction of horror or revulsion.

was horrified by such wanton cruelty

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 There would have been people who were appalled by what was going on. James Frater, CNN Money, 31 Oct. 2025 But, increasingly, events that should appall and unite America against violence instead fuel an intensifying partisanship. John Archibald, New Yorker, 30 Oct. 2025 That this face was his appalled him more. Literary Hub, 23 Oct. 2025 How shocked and appalled and offended everyone seems to be by this. Nick Suss, Nashville Tennessean, 13 Oct. 2025 After going public together on social media, the pair have elicited strong reactions from people in their comments — some appalled by their age gap and others who quickly jump to their defense. Luke Chinman, PEOPLE, 29 Sep. 2025 Many of the people who commented on the amendment said they were appalled by O’Hare’s cuts to the Democrats’ budgets. Rachel Royster, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 22 Sep. 2025 Leaders in northern Germany are appalled after a shop owner posted an antisemitic sign banning Jewish people in a store window. Carlo Angerer, NBC news, 19 Sep. 2025 Governance scolds are appalled by the number, as is the pope. Liz Hoffman, semafor.com, 16 Sep. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for appall
Verb
  • Images of Iraqi detainees being stripped naked and abused, published by the media, shocked the world.
    Ben Wedeman, CNN Money, 5 Nov. 2025
  • The growing pile of bad news has done little to shock the stock market, which is at near-record highs, but that’s largely because it’s been buoyed in part by AI megacaps.
    Gabrielle Fonrouge,Annie Palmer,Frank Holland, CNBC, 4 Nov. 2025
Verb
  • With much of the world horrified by the USSR’s brutality, Eisenhower was furious that the British-French-Israeli offensive was both diverting international attention and handing Moscow a PR victory by enabling it to speak about Western aggression in the Middle East.
    Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 3 Nov. 2025
  • The culprit here is a sequence where a deranged surgeon (Pierre Brasseur) attempts to graft a new face onto his daughter’s disfigured one, a scene that — while mild by today’s standards — horrified audiences in 1960.
    Katie Rife, Entertainment Weekly, 30 Oct. 2025
Verb
  • Elkins was stunned by how quickly the video gained traction.
    Lydia Patrick, MSNBC Newsweek, 6 Nov. 2025
  • On November 3, Paddington’s press tour brought him to the BBC, where journalist David Sillito was stunned into silence after seeing the bear in the flesh fur.
    Jennifer Zhan, Vulture, 4 Nov. 2025
Verb
  • When the Maitlands' attempts to frighten the Deetzes away fail miserably, Barbara and Adam turn to the mysterious and mischievous Beetlejuice (Michael Keaton) to rid them of the living.
    Steven Thrash, Entertainment Weekly, 25 Oct. 2025
  • Around 100 pairs were found abandoned on the roof, perhaps due to the thieves being frightened away, Sheriff John Budensiek said at the news conference.
    Mark Price, Miami Herald, 23 Oct. 2025

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Cite this Entry

“Appall.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/appall. Accessed 7 Nov. 2025.

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