as in surprising
causing a strong emotional reaction because of unexpectedness
the stupefying figures for poverty and starvation in some parts of the reputedly rich country
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
as in amazing
to make a strong impression on (someone) with something unexpected
stupefied by the ruling that he could not compete because he missed the qualifying age by two days
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Recent Examples of stupefying
Kansas City Star, 21 Apr. 2026
How will his writing team metabolize the stupefying scene at this year’s BAFTAs into his routine?
—Doreen St. Félix, New Yorker, 28 Feb. 2026
The Miami Hurricanes are at home, while the entire state of Indiana – save for some in West Lafayette – is content to abandon their homes to enjoy this unexpectedly stupefying playoff march.
—Dana O’Neil, CNN Money, 10 Jan. 2026
Dark times shade even darker, and yet through it all, in ways both uplifting and stupefying, life goes on.
—Julia Hass, Literary Hub, 23 Sep. 2025
The popularity Nirvana gained at stupefying speed and unmanageable proportions in 1991 is impossible to replicate in the culture and music industry of 2025.
—Chris R. Morgan, The Washington Examiner, 22 Aug. 2025
As attractive as the idea has been, various analog AI schemes have not delivered in a way that could really take a bite out of AI’s stupefying energy appetite.
—IEEE Spectrum, 2 June 2025
It’s been 25 years since Ulysse Nardin unveiled the Freak, with a stupefying seven-person parade a day before the 2001 Baselworld fair.
—Martino Carrera, Footwear News, 3 Sep. 2019
Verb
Again with the stupefying inability to produce with runners in scoring position, underscored by leaving 16 men on base.
—Kansas City Star, 21 Apr. 2026
How will his writing team metabolize the stupefying scene at this year’s BAFTAs into his routine?
—Doreen St. Félix, New Yorker, 28 Feb. 2026
The Miami Hurricanes are at home, while the entire state of Indiana – save for some in West Lafayette – is content to abandon their homes to enjoy this unexpectedly stupefying playoff march.
—Dana O’Neil, CNN Money, 10 Jan. 2026
Dark times shade even darker, and yet through it all, in ways both uplifting and stupefying, life goes on.
—Julia Hass, Literary Hub, 23 Sep. 2025
The popularity Nirvana gained at stupefying speed and unmanageable proportions in 1991 is impossible to replicate in the culture and music industry of 2025.
—Chris R. Morgan, The Washington Examiner, 22 Aug. 2025
As attractive as the idea has been, various analog AI schemes have not delivered in a way that could really take a bite out of AI’s stupefying energy appetite.
—IEEE Spectrum, 2 June 2025
It’s been 25 years since Ulysse Nardin unveiled the Freak, with a stupefying seven-person parade a day before the 2001 Baselworld fair.
—Martino Carrera, Footwear News, 3 Sep. 2019
Recent Examples of Synonyms for stupefying
Adjective
-
Step through that doorway and visitors are greeted by Penryn Grill, a full-service restaurant that has become one of Placer County's most surprising dining destinations.—
Conor McGill,
CBS News,
6 June 2026
-
That outcome would amount to a surprising end to what had been a rocket-ship campaign for the 42-year-old gadfly.—
Steven Zeitchik,
HollywoodReporter,
6 June 2026
Verb
-
In one camp Gao Sheng breaks a cultural norm by helping her father and uncles with a big project, amazing her relatives with her physical and mental strength.—
Mary Ann Grossmann,
Twin Cities,
18 Jan. 2026
Adjective
-
These sprinklers detect motion and will squirt bursts of water, startling squirrels and chasing them out of your garden.—
Molly Burford,
Southern Living,
6 June 2026
-
One of the more startling nuggets the doc reveals concerns Paul Bateson, the former radiological technician convicted of Verrill’s murder.—
David Rooney,
HollywoodReporter,
6 June 2026
Adjective
-
Where the movie’s true eccentricity comes in is in its combination of breezy comedy with shocking brutality and gore, perhaps most exemplified in an oddly casual moment in a morgue where Seagal and Wayans find a clue in the form of a serial number on a dead woman’s breast implant.—
Jim Hemphill,
IndieWire,
5 June 2026
-
Crayton said that the decision to allow Alabama to ignore the lower court’s ruling was shocking.—
Adam Serwer,
The Atlantic,
5 June 2026
Verb
-
Nordstrom has really sweet jewelry pieces at not-astonishing price points.—
Gina Vaynshteyn,
StyleCaster,
29 Apr. 2026
Adjective
-
The daring attack, a symbol of Ukraine's innovative drone efforts reminiscent of that stunning operation last year in which Ukraine hid drones in shipping trucks, releasing them deep in Russia and striking military airfields.—
ABC News,
ABC News,
7 June 2026
-
Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez’s stunning 2018 defeat of Representative Joe Crowley, a Queens party boss and member of the Democratic House leadership, catapulted her to international fame.—
Russell Berman,
The Atlantic,
7 June 2026
Cite this Entry
“Stupefying.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/stupefying. Accessed 10 Jun. 2026.
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