What does "shock" mean?
A sudden, heavy impact.
Shock
/ʃɒk/ adj, name, noun, verb
adj, name, noun, verb ·Very common ·Middle school level
Meaning at a glance
- Primary sense: A sudden, heavy impact.
- Grammar: shock is listed as adj, name, noun, verb.
- Nearest alternatives: blow, electric shock, impact, abscess.
- Useful contrasts: calm, composure, cushioning.
- Usage evidence: In a foreign country most of us go through culture shock.
How to use "shock"
- Start with the primary definition, then check the part of speech before placing the word in a sentence.
- Compare nearby synonyms to make sure "shock" carries the exact meaning, tone, and strength you need.
- Use the example sentence as a context check. If your sentence uses the word differently, confirm that the grammar still fits.
Meaning check
- Does the word fit the sentence's grammar?
- Does it match the intended tone rather than only the dictionary definition?
- Would a simpler synonym be clearer for the reader?
- Is there enough surrounding context to prevent ambiguity?
Source and review context
This entry combines structured lexical data with WordToolSet review checks. Definitions, examples, synonyms, and usage notes may come from different source tables, so the page is designed to show evidence from more than one angle before you rely on "shock" in a final draft.
If a word has several senses, prefer the sense that matches your sentence's grammar and surrounding context. A correct definition can still be the wrong choice when the sentence needs a different register, emphasis, or level of specificity.
Before you rely on this definition
Read the first definition as a starting point, then check the example, synonyms, and part of speech before treating "shock" as the right word for your sentence.
If your draft is formal, technical, persuasive, or sensitive, compare "shock" with a nearby alternative so the final choice matches both meaning and reader expectation.
Compare nearby meanings
- Use synonyms when you need a softer, stronger, simpler, or more specific word.
- Use antonyms to check the boundary of the meaning and avoid accidental contrast.
- Use the example sentence to confirm the word behaves naturally in context.
- Keep the original wording when a replacement adds complexity without improving precision.
Definition decision workflow
1. Identify the role
Check whether "shock" is acting as adj, name, noun, verb in your sentence. A definition is only useful when the grammar matches the way the word is being used.
2. Test the nearest option
Compare it with "blow" and other nearby choices to see whether the sentence needs a softer, stronger, or more familiar word.
3. Confirm with context
Use the example sentence below as an evidence check, then read your own sentence out loud to catch tone or rhythm problems.
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Final meaning check
Before publishing a sentence with "shock", ask whether the word helps the reader understand the idea faster. A precise word should reduce confusion, not simply make the sentence look more polished.
When the definition, synonym evidence, and example context point in the same direction, the word is usually a safer choice. When they conflict, revise the sentence or choose a clearer alternative.
Definitions
Noun
- 1 A sudden, heavy impact. countable, uncountable
"The train hit the buffers with a great shock."
- 2 An arrangement of sheaves for drying; a stook.
"Cause it on shocks to be by and by set."
- 3 a reflex response to the passage of electric current through the body wordnet
- 4 A sudden, heavy impact.; Something so surprising that it is stunning. countable, figuratively, uncountable
- 5 A lot consisting of sixty pieces; a term applied in some Baltic ports to loose goods. dated
Show 19 more definitions
- 6 the violent interaction of individuals or groups entering into combat wordnet
- 7 A sudden, heavy impact.; A sudden or violent mental or emotional disturbance. countable, uncountable
"A tremendous shock arises when a secret is discovered."
- 8 A tuft or bunch of something, such as hair or grass. broadly
"His head boasted a shock of sandy hair."
- 9 a mechanical damper; absorbs energy of sudden impulses wordnet
- 10 A sudden, heavy impact.; Electric shock, a sudden burst of electrical energy hitting a person or animal. countable, uncountable
"But as was the case with pacemakers, external defibrillators were unwieldy, and the shocks they delivered—in the rare cases when patients were still conscious—were painful."
- 11 A small dog with long shaggy hair, especially a poodle or spitz; a shaggy lapdog. obsolete
"When I read of witty persons, I could not figure them but like the little shock. (translating the German Spitz)"
- 12 an unpleasant or disappointing surprise wordnet
- 13 A sudden, heavy impact.; A state of distress following a mental or emotional disturbance, often caused by news or other stimuli. countable, uncountable
"Fans were in shock in the days following the singer's death."
- 14 a sudden jarring impact wordnet
- 15 A sudden, heavy impact.; Circulatory shock, a medical emergency characterized by the inability of the circulatory system to supply enough oxygen to meet tissue requirements. countable, uncountable
- 16 an instance of agitation of the earth's crust wordnet
- 17 A sudden, heavy impact.; A shock wave. countable, uncountable
"Several reflected shocks enter the bomb core in rapid succession, each helping to compress it to its maximum density."
- 18 the feeling of distress and disbelief that you have when something bad happens accidentally wordnet
- 19 A shock absorber (typically in the suspension of a vehicle). countable, uncountable
"If your truck's been riding rough, it might need new shocks."
- 20 a bushy thick mass (especially hair) wordnet
- 21 A discontinuity arising in the solution of a partial differential equation. countable, uncountable
- 22 a pile of sheaves of grain set on end in a field to dry; stalks of Indian corn set up in a field wordnet
- 23 A chemical added to a swimming pool to moderate the chlorine levels. countable, uncountable
"The warehouse that caught fire contained 99% trichloroisocyanuric acid (TCCA) – used to make chlorinated tablets to control bacteria and algae – and 99% dichloroisocyanuric acid (DCCA), which is used to make swimming pool shock – a treatment used to help break down contaminants."
- 24 (pathology) bodily collapse or near collapse caused by inadequate oxygen delivery to the cells; characterized by reduced cardiac output and rapid heartbeat and circulatory insufficiency and pallor wordnet
Verb
- 1 To cause to be emotionally shocked; to cause (someone) to feel greatly surprised or upset. transitive
"The disaster shocked the world."
- 2 To collect, or make up, into a shock or shocks; to stook. transitive
"to shock rye"
- 3 inflict a trauma upon wordnet
- 4 To strike with disgust, to offend, scandalize. transitive
- 5 subject to electrical shocks wordnet
Show 10 more definitions
- 6 To give an electric shock to. transitive
- 7 collect or gather into shocks wordnet
- 8 To subject to a shock wave or violent impact. transitive
"Ammonium nitrate can detonate if severely shocked."
- 9 collide violently wordnet
- 10 To meet with a shock; to collide in a violent encounter. intransitive, obsolete
"They saw the moment approach when the two parties would shock together."
- 11 strike with horror or terror wordnet
- 12 To add a chemical to (a swimming pool) to moderate the chlorine levels. transitive
- 13 surprise greatly; knock someone's socks off wordnet
- 14 To deform the crystal structure of a stone by the application of extremely high pressure at moderate temperature, as produced only by hypervelocity impact events, lightning strikes, and nuclear explosions. transitive
"It takes more than two gigapascals (two billion pascals) of pressure to shock quartz in this manner (for comparison, the atmosphere at sea level exerts a little over 100,000 pascals of pressure)."
- 15 strike with disgust or revulsion wordnet
Adjective
- 1 Causing intense surprise, horror, etc.; unexpected and shocking. not-comparable
"His shock announcement rocked the tennis world."
Proper Noun
- 1 A surname.
Synonyms
All synonymsAntonyms
Example
"In a foreign country most of us go through culture shock."
Common questions
What is a synonym for "shock"?
Common synonyms include: blow, electric shock, impact, abscess, ac arc, accident.
How do you use "shock" in a sentence?
In a foreign country most of us go through culture shock.
How do you pronounce "shock"?
Pronounced /ʃɒk/.
Etymology
Etymology 1
From Middle Dutch schokken (“to push, jolt, shake, jerk”) or Middle French choquer (“to collide with, clash”), from Old Dutch *skokkan (“to shake up and down, shog”), from Proto-Germanic *skukkaną (“to move, shake, tremble”). Of uncertain origin. Perhaps related to Proto-Germanic *skakaną (“to shake, stir”), from Proto-Indo-European *(s)kek-, *(s)keg- (“to shake, stir”); see shake. Cognate with Middle Low German schocken (“collide with, deliver a blow to, move back and forth”), Old High German scoc (“a jolt, swing”), Middle High German schocken (“to swing”) (German schaukeln), Old Norse skykkr (“vibration, surging motion”), Icelandic skykkjun (“tremulously”), Middle English schiggen (“to shake”). Doublet of shog.
Etymology 2
Variant of shag.
Etymology 3
* As an English surname, variant of Shuck. * As a German surname, Americanized from Schock, itself a variant of Scheck, or from the sense Schock (“heap”). Compare Schoch.