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appalled 1 of 2

adjective

Definition of appallednext
as in aghast

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appalled

2 of 2

verb

past tense of appall
as in shocked
to cause an unpleasant surprise for conditions inside the house overrun with cats simply appalled animal control officers

Synonyms & Similar Words

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 appalled
Adjective
And part of me is a little appalled by that. — Ben Smith, semafor.com, 9 Jan. 2026 Coogan said, sounding less appalled than giddy at the figure. — Julia Black, Vanity Fair, 8 Jan. 2026
Verb
Plenty of adults were appalled, but punk had a powerful influence on fashion, filmmaking and graphic design as well as rock music – well beyond punk itself. — The Week Uk, TheWeek, 23 Aug. 2026 Residents and board members alike said they were appalled at the practice. — Kathy McCormack, Chicago Tribune, 20 Aug. 2026 See All Example Sentences for appalled
Recent Examples of Synonyms for appalled
  1. aghast
  2. shocked
  3. horrified
  4. stunned
  5. surprised
  6. dismayed
  7. bewildered
Adjective
  • At first Burgomeister is aghast at such a horrific proposal and rebuffs her offer.
    — Theater Critic, Los Angeles Times, 16 Sep. 2026
  • Albert Einstein was aghast at how nuclear fission had been put to first use.
    — Orlando Sentinel, The Orlando Sentinel, 8 Sep. 2026
Definition of aghast
Verb
  • That result shocked many Germans who had believed their country had developed an immunity to nationalism and assertions of racial superiority after confronting the horrors of its Nazi past through education and laws to prohibit persecution.
    — Arkansas Online, Arkansas Online, 21 Sep. 2026
  • Now a corporate security professional based in Chicago, Neagley is shocked when her childhood bestie, Tommy (Jhaleil Swaby), is killed on the L train tracks, seemingly walking into an oncoming train while high.
    — Jennifer Ouellette, ArsTechnica, 21 Sep. 2026
Definition of shocked
Adjective
  • Their Bell helicopters collided midair, sending flaming wreckage above the heads of horrified drivers on the Pasadena Freeway.
    — Patt Morrison, Los Angeles Times, 16 Sep. 2026
  • When Tae-ha starts a fire that erupts into an explosion, a horrified Eun-sae begins to remember her life before amnesia.
    — Kayti Burt, Time, 7 Aug. 2026
Definition of horrified
Verb
  • Residents of Dawn Park, the Johannesburg suburb where the ninth body was found on Thursday, were stunned by the discovery.
    — Mogomotsi Magome, Los Angeles Times, 17 Sep. 2026
  • In Kosovo's capital, Pristina, thousands of people watched the hearing live on a huge screen and were stunned at the sentence.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 16 Sep. 2026
Definition of stunned
Adjective
  • The Muzzy of last season would never do such a thing, and even Bronwyn seems surprised.
    — Tom Smyth, Vulture, 17 Sep. 2026
  • Those fishing off the Malibu Pier were surprised in mid-August by a hammerhead shark swimming nearby.
    — Jaclyn Cosgrove, Los Angeles Times, 17 Sep. 2026
Definition of surprised
Adjective
  • But minutes later, Austria tied the game again, leaving the lobby in dismayed silence.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 30 June 2026
  • His reflexive suspicion of causes left him more dismayed than energized by the nascent conflict.
    — John Swansburg, The Atlantic, 15 June 2026
Definition of dismayed
Adjective
  • Five o’clock Saturday, the Riverside Stadium and Middlesbrough head coach Kim Hellberg is fist-pumping a half-bewildered but fully enthused home crowd.
    — Michael Walker, New York Times, 15 Sep. 2026
  • When kids first got online, parents were bewildered and alarmed, but kids, who tend to gravitate to new technology, found freedom in a space that was basically ungoverned.
    — Joshua Rothman, New Yorker, 4 Sep. 2026
Definition of bewildered

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Cite this Entry

“Appalled.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/appalled. Accessed 23 Sep. 2026.

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