jolting 1 of 2

adjective

as in startling
causing a strong emotional reaction because of unexpectedness the jolting news about our friend's premature death

Synonyms & Similar Words

Relevance

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

jolting

2 of 2

verb

present participle of jolt
1
as in shaking
to make a series of small irregular or violent movements the roller coaster car jerked and jolted as it coursed along the old wooden tracks

Synonyms & Similar Words
2
as in yanking
to move or cause to move with a sharp quick motion she jolted the door open with her elbow

Synonyms & Similar Words
3
as in appalling
to cause an unpleasant surprise for the sneak terrorist attack jolted the country out of its indolence and indifference

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 jolting
Verb
Oil prices have been swinging for months and were as high as $102 per barrel at one point during the conflict, jolting already stubbornly high inflation. — Damian J. Troise, Los Angeles Times, 5 Aug. 2026 The royal, who was seen repeatedly blinking before jolting awake, was attending the annual ANZAC Day service at London's Westminster Abbey, which is held to commemorate Commonwealth soldiers from Australia, New Zealand and Canada who served and died in wars and peacekeeping operations. — Jennifer Hassan, USA Today, 19 June 2026 On social media, residents across the area described the earthquake jolting their homes and rattling windows and doors. — William B. Davis, New York Times, 4 June 2026 And while cinematically the evidence may not yet be persuasive, with a young generation listening to its own instincts and economically jolting a sclerotic system, the parallel feels bang-on. — Steven Zeitchik, HollywoodReporter, 31 May 2026 Prices have spiked for oil, gas and several related products, jolting the world economy. — Mariam Fam, Chicago Tribune, 25 May 2026 Its closure has caused a spike in the price of oil, gas, and several downstream products, jolting the world economy. — Samy Magdy, Fortune, 24 May 2026 Prices have spiked for oil, gas and several downstream products, jolting the world economy. — ABC News, 24 May 2026 Chloe Claudel, picking up on that thread, directs the play in a cleverly glitchy mode, giving you normality with sudden, jolting gestures that move it into territory that’s unsettling, hilarious, or oddly serene. — Jackson McHenry, Vulture, 13 May 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for jolting
  1. startling
  2. shaking
  3. yanking
  4. appalling
  5. surprising
  6. shuddering
  7. jerking
  8. shocking
Adjective
  • Churchman said that in developing the firm’s AI platform for clients, the software made a startling admission.
    — Hugh Son, CNBC, 24 Aug. 2026
  • A couple's anniversary getaway took a wild turn when a bear strolled into a Gatlinburg tea shop and began rummaging through merchandise before suddenly jumping onto the counter in a startling encounter caught on video.
    — Michael Sinkewicz, FOXNews.com, 23 Aug. 2026
Definition of startling
Verb
  • Knightsbridge was challenged over the opening mile by the speedy Full Serrano before shaking him off at the head of the stretch.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 22 Aug. 2026
  • Hood makes the sign of the cross with his shaking hands and removes his glasses to wipe away a tear.
    — Miami Herald, Miami Herald, 22 Aug. 2026
Definition of shaking
Verb
  • The episode feinted toward genuine rapprochement before yanking the rug out, leaving the Gang pelted with an industrial-grade indoor blizzard and then happily chucking rocks at passing trains, as was Mac and Charlie’s childhood tradition.
    — Dennis Perkins, Entertainment Weekly, 28 July 2026
  • The tentacular Scylla is seen briefly but makes an impact, yanking sailors off Odysseus’s ship in a series of loud jump scares.
    — Bilge Ebiri, Vulture, 16 July 2026
Definition of yanking
Verb
  • The young Forster recoiled from the school’s culture of authoritarianism and militaristic chauvinism, which may have found expression in the students’ often appalling attitudes toward their own mothers.
    — Jessica Winter, New Yorker, 7 May 2026
  • Of all the recent poster boys for appalling misbehavior by the State Police, Michael Proctor would of course rank number one.
    — Howie Carr, Boston Herald, 4 Jan. 2026
Definition of appalling
Adjective
  • For something with only 256 pixels to play with, people have found a surprising number of things to put on them.
    — New Atlas, New Atlas, 27 Aug. 2026
  • Paranormal Activity understands just how much fun that can be, crafting a story so suspenseful, so surprising and so startling that the audience’s screams become a soundtrack all their own.
    — Dave Quinn, PEOPLE, 26 Aug. 2026
Definition of surprising
Verb
  • These seemingly innocuous incidents attain new significance as they’re revisited alongside a slow crescendo that suddenly turns to shuddering piano chords on the track’s bridge.
    — Nick Ayres DeMasi, Pitchfork, 1 July 2026
  • Choose Baits with Vibration Lipless crankbaits earn their keep each spring, as their shuddering motion creates the bait-mimicking tremors to which bass respond.
    — David A. Brown, Outdoor Life, 1 July 2026
Definition of shuddering
Verb
  • Stuttering lines, on the left, jerking up and down, denote the rattle of guns; on the right, the lines are all but flat, as silence descends.
    — Anthony Lane, New Yorker, 3 Aug. 2026
  • Logan Howlett, got a tear-jerking send-off in James Mangold’s Logan.
    — Brianna Zigler, Entertainment Weekly, 27 July 2026
Definition of jerking
Verb
  • On Monday June 29, a bomb exploded on the doorstep of Yermolaiev’s luxury apartment in Monaco, gravely injuring the Ukrainian millionaire and shocking residents of the wealthy city state.
    — Ivana Kottasová, CNN Money, 20 Aug. 2026
  • Clary said the devices have been an extremely effective tool that sometimes make students cooperate on sight even without shocking a student.
    — Kathy McCormack, Chicago Tribune, 20 Aug. 2026
Definition of shocking

Browse Nearby Words

jolted
jolting
jolts
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Jolting.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/jolting. Accessed 27 Aug. 2026.

Copy Citation
Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

More from Merriam-Webster

Word of the Day

Listen to the pronunciation of southpaw

See Definitions and Examples »

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

A Who’s Who Regarding ‘Who’s’ and ‘Whose’

'A' or 'an'? What about before 'h'? An Indefinite Article Guide

Why is '-ed' sometimes pronounced at the end of a word?

What's the difference between 'fascism' and 'socialism'?

Commonly Misspelled Words
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

Ye Olde Nincompoop: Old-Fashioned Words for 'Stupid'

14 Phobias You Probably Haven't Heard Of

Even More Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't

Why do we say 'break a leg'?

16 Glee-ridden Words from Schitt's Creek
See More

Popular

See More

A Who’s Who Regarding ‘Who’s’ and ‘Whose’

Ye Olde Nincompoop: Old-Fashioned Words for 'Stupid'

14 Phobias You Probably Haven't Heard Of
See More

Games & Quizzes

See All
Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.
Quordle Can you solve 4 words at once?
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.
Blossom Pick the best words!
Play Missing Letter: a crossword with a twist. Each of the 25 puzzle words start with a different letter of the alphabet. Which letter is missing?
The Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
alt-684346df967d5
Add A Letter Quiz Pick the letter that goes in the same spot in fou...
See All