SHOCKING: Synonyms and Related Words. What is Another Word for SHOCKING?

Need another word that means the same as “shocking”? Find 48 synonyms and 30 related words for “shocking” in this overview.

The synonyms of “Shocking” are: disgraceful, scandalous, shameful, lurid, appalling, horrifying, horrific, dreadful, awful, frightful, terrible, horrible, outrageous, vile, abominable, ghastly, foul, monstrous, unspeakable, abhorrent, hideous, atrocious, repellent, revolting, odious, repulsive, repugnant, disgusting, nauseating, sickening, grisly, loathsome, offensive, distressing, upsetting, perturbing, disturbing, disquieting, unsettling, agitating, severe, serious, grave, critical, grievous, acute, dire, grim

Shocking as an Adjective

Definitions of "Shocking" as an adjective

According to the Oxford Dictionary of English, “shocking” as an adjective can have the following definitions:

• Giving offense to moral sensibilities and injurious to reputation- Thackeray.
• Very bad.
• Giving offense to moral sensibilities and injurious to reputation.
• Glaringly vivid and graphic; marked by sensationalism.
• Causing indignation or disgust; offensive.
• Causing a feeling of surprise and dismay.

Synonyms of "Shocking" as an adjective (48 Words)

abhorrent	Offensive to the mind. Racism was abhorrent to us all.
abominable	Exceptionally bad or displeasing. What an abominable mess.
acute	Denoting or designed for patients with an acute form of a disease. An acute sense of smell.
agitating	Causing or tending to cause anger or resentment.
appalling	Causing consternation. His conduct was appalling.
atrocious	Provoking horror. He attempted an atrocious imitation of my English accent.
awful	Inspiring reverential wonder or fear. The awful war.
critical	Characterized by careful evaluation and judgment. A critical analysis of Melville s writings.
dire	Of a very poor quality. He was in dire need of help.
disgraceful	Giving offense to moral sensibilities and injurious to reputation- Thackeray. It is disgraceful that they should be denied unemployment benefits.
disgusting	Highly offensive; arousing aversion or disgust. He had the most disgusting rotten teeth.
disquieting	Causing mental discomfort. The disquieting sounds of nearby gunfire.
distressing	Causing anxiety, sorrow or pain; upsetting. Some very distressing news.
disturbing	Causing anxiety; worrying. A disturbing amount of crime.
dreadful	Extremely disagreeable and unpleasant. There s been a dreadful accident.
foul	Of a baseball not hit between the foul lines. Foul language.
frightful	Extreme in degree or extent or amount or impact. In a frightful hurry.
ghastly	Very objectionable, bad, or unpleasant. One of the most ghastly crimes ever committed.
grave	Dignified and somber in manner or character and committed to keeping promises. A grave situation.
grievous	Causing or marked by grief or anguish. His death was a grievous blow.
grim	Harshly ironic or sinister. Grim necessity.
grisly	Shockingly repellent; inspiring horror. The town was shaken by a series of grisly crimes.
hideous	Extremely ugly. A hideous pattern of injustice.
horrible	Very unpleasant. A horrible massacre.
horrific	Causing horror. Horrific injuries.
horrifying	Provoking horror- Winston Churchill. An alarming even horrifying picture.
loathsome	Highly offensive; arousing aversion or disgust. This loathsome little swine.
lurid	Unpleasantly bright in colour, especially so as to create a harsh or unnatural effect. Lurid flames.
monstrous	Inhumanly or outrageously evil or wrong. The monstrous tidal wave swamped the surrounding countryside.
nauseating	Causing or liable to cause a feeling of nausea or disgust; disgusting. A nauseating smell.
odious	Unequivocally detestable- Edmund Burke. Consequences odious to those you govern.
offensive	Morally offensive. Offensive operations against the insurgents.
outrageous	Very bold and unusual and rather shocking. Spends an outrageous amount on entertainment.
perturbing	Causing distress or worry or anxiety. There were two scenes that I think would be perturbing to small children.
repellent	Able to repel a particular thing; impervious to a particular substance. A water repellent fabric.
repugnant	Extremely distasteful; unacceptable. Cannibalism seems repugnant to us.
repulsive	Arousing intense distaste or disgust. Repulsive behavior.
revolting	Highly offensive; arousing aversion or disgust. Revolting food.
scandalous	Giving offense to moral sensibilities and injurious to reputation- Thackeray. A scandalous allegation.
serious	Requiring effort or concentration; complex and not easy to answer or solve. Raised serious objections to the proposal.
severe	Severely simple. A severe blow.
shameful	Giving offense to moral sensibilities and injurious to reputation. A shameful accusation.
sickening	Causing or liable to cause a feeling of nausea or disgust. She hit the ground with a sickening thud.
terrible	Very unskilful. What a terrible mess.
unsettling	Causing anxiety or uneasiness; disturbing. The finale may come as an unsettling shock.
unspeakable	Too sacred to be uttered. Unspeakable happiness.
upsetting	Causing an emotional disturbance. An upsetting experience.
vile	Extremely unpleasant. All the feasts that thou hast shared erewhile to mine shall be but vile.

Usage Examples of "Shocking" as an adjective

• She brought shocking news.
• Shocking behaviour.
• I've got a shocking cold.
• The most shocking book of its time.

Associations of "Shocking" (30 Words)

amaze	Affect with wonder. He has been amazed by the quality of the employees at the bank.
amazing	Inspiring awe or admiration or wonder. An amazing number of people registered.
astonish	Surprise or impress (someone) greatly. You never fail to astonish me.
astonishing	Surprising greatly. An astonishing achievement.
astounding	Bewildering or striking dumb with wonder. The summit offers astounding views.
awesome	Extremely well; excellently. The awesome complexity of the universe.
disturbing	Causing distress or worry or anxiety. A disturbing amount of crime.
flabbergasted	Greatly surprised or astonished. Flabbergasted fans took to the streets to celebrate the team s big win.
haunting	The action of haunting a place. From two handsome and talented young men to two haunting horrors of disintegration.
impressive	Making a strong or vivid impression. Impressive achievements in science.
incredible	Beyond belief or understanding. An almost incredible tale of triumph and tragedy.
marvelous	Being or having the character of a miracle. A marvelous collection of rare books.
outrageous	Wildly exaggerated or improbable. Her outrageous leotards and sexy routines.
prodigious	Remarkably or impressively great in extent, size, or degree. The young Mozart s prodigious talents.
puzzled	Unable to understand; perplexed. The questioners were met with puzzled looks.
raunchy	Energetically earthy and sexually explicit. His raunchy new novel.
redoubtable	Inspiring fear- G.H.Johnston. He was a redoubtable debater.
revelation	The last book of the New Testament recounting a divine revelation of the future to St John. Seeing them play at international level was a revelation.
saintliness	The quality of resembling a saint. Her selfless behaviour borders on saintliness.
sensational	Causing great public interest and excitement. A sensational view.
shattering	The act of breaking something into small pieces. The shattering peal of artillery.
shock	Collect or gather into shocks. They were deeply shocked by the murder.
spectacular	Characteristic of spectacles or drama. French history was represented in a spectacular for tourists.
staggering	Deeply shocking; astonishing. Suffered a staggering defeat.
startling	So remarkably different or sudden as to cause momentary shock or alarm. Startling news.
surprised	Taken unawares or suddenly and feeling wonder or astonishment. There was a surprised silence.
surprising	Causing surprise; unexpected. Leaped up with surprising agility.
unexpectedly	In a way that was not expected or regarded as likely. Tourist chiefs reported unexpectedly high visitor numbers.
wonderful	Extraordinarily good or great; used especially as intensifiers. The climate was wonderful all the year round.
wondering	Characterized by or expressive of admiration and amazement. Peter listened with an air of wondering astonishment.