as in to shock
to cause an unpleasant surprise for
the news that we had failed the auto inspection shook us up
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of shake up
Burgess Everett, semafor.com, 18 Feb. 2026
There’s a new design advisory committee in Washington—and it’s primed to shake up the look of transportation infrastructure across the country.
—Katherine McLaughlin, Architectural Digest, 18 Feb. 2026
Kevin Dotson, CNN Money, 5 Jan. 2026
That shake-up was on display within days of starting.
—Brian Womack, Dallas Morning News, 4 Jan. 2026
See All Example Sentences for shake up
Verb
Democrats are shaking up their campaign against the GOP’s 2025 tax cuts.
—Burgess Everett, semafor.com, 18 Feb. 2026
There’s a new design advisory committee in Washington—and it’s primed to shake up the look of transportation infrastructure across the country.
—Katherine McLaughlin, Architectural Digest, 18 Feb. 2026
Noun
For some teams, that involves a shake-up in the coaching staff and front office.
—Kevin Dotson, CNN Money, 5 Jan. 2026
That shake-up was on display within days of starting.
—Brian Womack, Dallas Morning News, 4 Jan. 2026
See All Example Sentences for shake up
Recent Examples of Synonyms for shake up
Verb
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Edward Segarra King Charles III shocked royal onlookers by attending a fashion show on the same day younger brother Mountbatten-Windsor was arrested.—
Kim Hjelmgaard,
USA Today,
20 Feb. 2026
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The timing of the resignation shocked players and union staff.—
Hannah Keyser,
CNN Money,
19 Feb. 2026
Noun
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The uptrend recently reset itself after a brief shakeout at the start of the month, putting the iShares MSCI South Africa ETF (EZA) back on our radar.—
Katie Stockton,
CNBC,
23 Feb. 2026
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The shakeout in luxury retail that has claimed the parent company of Saks 5th Avenue, Bergdorf Goodman and Neiman Marcus is about to hit shoppers.—
Emily Lorsch,
NBC news,
30 Jan. 2026
Verb
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Critics were divided, audiences were entertained, TV executives and Beale’s IRL equivalents were appalled, Oscar voters were enthralled.—
David Fear,
Rolling Stone,
21 Feb. 2026
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Starkly depicting such abuses as force-feeding, strip-searching, and staff bullying, the movie appalled audiences on its release, and the State of Massachusetts quickly banned it from being shown publicly for more than twenty years.—
News Desk,
Artforum,
17 Feb. 2026
Noun
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And the longest-ever government shutdown shaved a bunch of productivity off the books in the fourth quarter – growth that the US economy should be making back this quarter.—
David Goldman,
CNN Money,
24 Feb. 2026
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On the campaign trail, Spanberger centered her message on affordability concerns and criticized the administration's treatment of federal workers through mass layoffs and the longest government shutdown in history.—
Elena Moore,
NPR,
24 Feb. 2026
Verb
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Chloe had dated Maxwell for more than a year, and she was stunned to hear her ex-boyfriend was a suspect.—
Lauren A. White,
CBS News,
22 Feb. 2026
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The Duchess of Sussex stunned in an ultra-plunging maroon slip dress while pouring sparkling wine in a post shared on February 21.—
Lara Walsh,
InStyle,
22 Feb. 2026
Noun
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Interviewed before the store closing, chief executive officer Tres Lund said last year that an increase in store security expenses and decrease in customer visits had left operating costs outpacing sales.—
Frederick Melo,
Twin Cities,
26 Feb. 2026
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In his closing remarks at the congress, Kim doubled down on expanding the nation’s nuclear arsenal.—
Will Ripley,
CNN Money,
26 Feb. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Shake up.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/shake%20up. Accessed 27 Feb. 2026.
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