gobsmacked
Học thuậtThân thiện
Definition
- Adjective:
- Utterly astounded; completely astonished; shocked to the point of being speechless: The word describes a state of extreme surprise, often to the point where one is momentarily unable to speak or react. It conveys a sense of being overwhelmed by unexpected news or an astonishing event.
Usage
- Primary Use: Used as a predicate adjective (following a linking verb like , , ) to describe a person's reaction.
- Register: Informal, colloquial. Common in British and Australian English, but understood in other varieties.
- Context: Typically used for reactions to surprising news, revelations, or spectacular sights.
Examples
- Adjective:
- I was absolutely gobsmacked when I heard they had won the lottery.
- She stood there, gobsmacked, as the final score was announced.
- The audience was gobsmacked by the magician's incredible final trick.
Advanced Usage
- Intensifiers: Often used with adverbs like , , , or to emphasize the degree of astonishment.
- We were totally gobsmacked by their generosity.
- Descriptive Use: Can be used to describe a person's appearance or state in a narrative.
- He had a gobsmacked expression on his face.
Variants and Related Words
- Gobsmack (verb, informal): To astonish or astound someone.
- The news really gobsmacked me.
- Gob (noun, slang, chiefly British): Mouth. (This is the etymological root; "gobsmacked" literally suggests being hit in the mouth, i.e., struck dumb.)
Synonyms
- Astonished: Filled with sudden and great wonder or surprise.
- Flabbergasted: Extremely surprised or shocked.
- Stunned: So shocked that one is temporarily unable to react.
- Thunderstruck: Extremely surprised or shocked.
Antonyms
- Unfazed: Not disconcerted or perturbed.
- Unsurprised: Not feeling or showing surprise.
- Expectant: Having or showing an excited feeling that something is about to happen.
Related Idioms/Phrases
- To be knocked for six (idiom, chiefly British): To be very surprised or upset by something. (Shares a similar sense of being overwhelmed.)
- To be lost for words: Unable to speak due to strong emotion, especially surprise. (Describes a common effect of being gobsmacked.)