Stupefaction
noun ·Uncommon ·Advanced level
Definitions
- 1 The state of extreme shock or astonishment. countable, uncountable
- 2 the action of stupefying; making dull or lethargic wordnet
- 3 A state of insensibility; stupor. countable, uncountable
"Suddenly roused from the state of stupefaction to which fear had reduced her, the female filled the air with shrieks. Disengaging herself from the officers, and rushing towards her husband, she clung with all her strength to his arm, imploring him, with frantic violence, not to let them kill her."
- 4 marginal consciousness wordnet
- 5 a feeling of stupefied astonishment wordnet
Example
More examples"Suddenly roused from the state of stupefaction to which fear had reduced her, the female filled the air with shrieks. Disengaging herself from the officers, and rushing towards her husband, she clung with all her strength to his arm, imploring him, with frantic violence, not to let them kill her."
Etymology
From Middle French stupéfaction, from Latin stupefaciō (“strike dumb, stun with amazement, stupefy”), from stupeō (“I am stunned, speechless”) (English stupid, stupor) + faciō (“do, make”).
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Data sourced from Wiktionary, WordNet, CMU, and other open linguistic databases. Updated March 2026.