Definition

1. Noun:

   • A sudden, upsetting, or surprising event or experience: An event or piece of news that causes a feeling of surprise, distress, or disbelief.
   • A violent collision or impact: A sudden, forceful meeting or contact between objects.
   • A medical condition of acute circulatory failure: A serious condition where not enough blood reaches the body's tissues, often caused by severe injury, illness, or emotional trauma.
   • A thick, bushy mass of hair: An untidy, dense cluster of hair.
   • A pile of sheaves of grain set upright to dry: A group of grain stalks, like wheat or corn, tied together and stood on end in a field.

2. Verb:

   • To cause someone to feel surprised, upset, or offended: To give someone an unpleasant feeling of surprise or disgust.
   • To collide with force: To strike or impact violently.
   • To subject to an electric current: To give an electric shock.

Examples

• Noun:

  • The news of his sudden death was a terrible shock to everyone.
  • The shock of the collision threw the passengers forward.
  • The patient went into shock after the accident and needed immediate treatment.
  • He has a wild shock of white hair.
  • The harvested wheat was gathered into shocks in the field.

• Verb:

  • The graphic images in the documentary shocked the audience.
  • The two cars shocked together with a loud crash.
  • Be careful not to shock yourself on the exposed wire.

Advanced Usage

• "Culture shock": The feeling of disorientation experienced when suddenly subjected to an unfamiliar culture or way of life.
  • Moving to a new country often causes culture shock.
• "In shock": A state of being stunned or bewildered, often following a traumatic event.
  • She was in shock for hours after hearing the bad news.
• "Shock absorber": A device for absorbing sudden impulses, especially on a vehicle.
  • The car's shock absorbers need to be replaced.

Variants and Related Words

• Shocked (adj): Feeling or showing surprise, distress, or disgust.
  • We were all shocked by the election results.
• Shocking (adj): Causing intense surprise, disgust, or outrage.
  • The report contained shocking details.
• Shocker (n): A very surprising or shocking event or story.
  • The final episode of the show was a real shocker.

Synonyms

• Noun: Blow, jolt, trauma, surprise, startle.
• Verb: Appall, horrify, stun, startle, jolt.

Related Phrasal Verbs

• "Shock into": To cause someone to do something by shocking them.
  • The tragic accident shocked him into changing his reckless driving habits.

Related Idioms

• "Shock tactics": Deliberately startling or aggressive methods used to achieve a goal.
  • The activist group used shock tactics to draw attention to the issue.
• "Shock and awe": A military strategy based on achieving rapid dominance through overwhelming power.
  • The initial phase of the campaign was based on shock and awe.

Noun

1. a mechanical damper; absorbs energy of sudden impulses
   • the old car needed a new set of shocks
2. a sudden jarring impact
   • the door closed with a jolt
   • all the jars and jolts were smoothed out by the shock absorbers
3. a bushy thick mass (especially hair)
   • he had an unruly shock of black hair
4. a pile of sheaves of grain set on end in a field to dry; stalks of Indian corn set up in a field
   • corn is bound in small sheaves and several sheaves are set up together in shocks
   • whole fields of wheat in shock
5. an unpleasant or disappointing surprise
   • it came as a shock to learn that he was injured
6. an instance of agitation of the earth's crust
   • the first shock of the earthquake came shortly after noon while workers were at lunch
7. (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
   • loss of blood is an important cause of shock
8. a reflex response to the passage of electric current through the body
   • subjects received a small electric shock when they made the wrong response
   • electricians get accustomed to occasional shocks
9. the violent interaction of individuals or groups entering into combat
   • the armies met in the shock of battle
10. the feeling of distress and disbelief that you have when something bad happens accidentally
    • his mother's death left him in a daze
    • he was numb with shock

Verb

1. inflict a trauma upon
2. subject to electrical shocks
3. collect or gather into shocks
   • shock grain
4. collide violently
5. strike with horror or terror
   • The news of the bombing shocked her
6. strike with disgust or revulsion
   • The scandalous behavior of this married woman shocked her friends
7. surprise greatly; knock someone's socks off
   • I was floored when I heard that I was promoted