1
as in disgusting
causing intense displeasure, disgust, or resentment
opening your mouth to show me your half-chewed food is absolutely appalling
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in horrific
extremely disturbing or repellent
appalling crimes against humanity
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
as in shocking
to cause an unpleasant surprise for
conditions inside the house overrun with cats simply appalled animal control officers
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Examples Sentences
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Recent Examples of appalling
Jeremy Konyndyk, Foreign Affairs, 2 Dec. 2024
That film — about the appalling treatment of Indigenous children at Indian residential schools — leads the Critics Choice Documentary Awards with eight nominations.
—Matthew Carey, Deadline, 14 Nov. 2024
The resourcefulness of the people is as astonishing as the conditions are appalling.
—Vince Beiser, WIRED, 30 Nov. 2024
The fact that Trump will be placing his hands squarely on the scale of justice for his benefit in his own case is unprecedented in American legal annals and is fundamentally appalling for the very reason that those two principles are bedrocks of our American criminal justice system.
—Dennis C. McAndrews, Baltimore Sun, 27 Nov. 2024
See all Example Sentences for appalling 
Adjective
This may be the starkest example of the Biden administration’s appalling failure to hold Israel to account for flouting its humanitarian obligations in its war in Gaza.
—Jeremy Konyndyk, Foreign Affairs, 2 Dec. 2024
That film — about the appalling treatment of Indigenous children at Indian residential schools — leads the Critics Choice Documentary Awards with eight nominations.
—Matthew Carey, Deadline, 14 Nov. 2024
The resourcefulness of the people is as astonishing as the conditions are appalling.
—Vince Beiser, WIRED, 30 Nov. 2024
The fact that Trump will be placing his hands squarely on the scale of justice for his benefit in his own case is unprecedented in American legal annals and is fundamentally appalling for the very reason that those two principles are bedrocks of our American criminal justice system.
—Dennis C. McAndrews, Baltimore Sun, 27 Nov. 2024
See all Example Sentences for appalling
Recent Examples of Synonyms for appalling
Adjective
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That ends up dislodging the disgusting foreign item in Larry's throat.Esther Zuckerman, TIME, 12 Dec. 2024
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Leigh goes for the gags in this one, from Broadbent’s workplace pratfall to friend of the family Aubrey’s (Timothy Spall) disgusting new restaurant.Fran Hoepfner, Vulture, 9 Dec. 2024
Adjective
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Eric Gordon was also supposed to provide some secondary ball-handling off the bench in theory, but the soon-to-be 36-year-old is off to a horrific start this season.Bryan Toporek, Forbes, 16 Dec. 2024
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Former detainees at the horrific Saydnaya prison near Damascus said Amer had disappeared in mid-April 2015 after being tortured there.Raja Razek, CNN, 16 Dec. 2024
Verb
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In the show’s two signature numbers, both of them Norma’s declarations of her own worthiness, Scherzinger stands at center stage and belts with shocking vocal power and agility, surrounded by purgatorial swirls of smoke and blown out by that Lloydian white light.Daniel D'Addario, Variety, 21 Oct. 2024
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But rather than play up the murders’ shocking gore or give momentum to Lois’ investigation, the first few episodes are content to linger in the investigator’s ennui.Alison Herman, Variety, 4 Oct. 2024
Adjective
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But even if the company succeeds, internet users have a way of pushing the boundaries of new tools like this until every possible awful output has been demonstrated.Scott Rosenberg, Axios, 10 Dec. 2024
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As a unit, the Bengals defense has been awful, only scoring four PPG, which is the 4th least in the NFL.Steve Bradshaw, Forbes, 10 Dec. 2024
Adjective
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Prehistoric Rock Art Sites Created 'Multisensory Experience' For Hunter-Gatherers By Aristos Georgiou Science and Health Reporter 0 A collection of prehistoric human remains has revealed gruesome insights into a brutal massacre that took place more than 4,000 years ago.Raja Krishnamoorthi, Newsweek, 16 Dec. 2024
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Police think the gruesome gunshot death is suicide.Bryan Alexander, USA TODAY, 16 Dec. 2024
Adjective
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Although there is high demand among students for internships and other work opportunities, our education-employer ecosystem is doing a horrible job delivering them.Brandon Busteed, Forbes, 14 Dec. 2024
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Everyone is forgetting conveniently about October 7, but that was a horrible day for the world, not for Israel, for the world.TIME Staff, TIME, 12 Dec. 2024
Adjective
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Jack McBrayer plays a flustered resort concierge who delivers the terrible news to two bridezilla-esque adults who won’t be walking down the aisle in white but are still very invested in the nuptials.Dessi Gomez, Deadline, 11 Dec. 2024
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Food is terrible, the vibe is off, absolutely trash.Joseph Epstein, Newsweek, 10 Dec. 2024
Adjective
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Reviews of the film at the time tended to single out the career-best performance of Jason Patric, primarily because, as the aggro, rape-minded workout buddy to Eckhart’s weak-spined Barry, Patric’s is the showiest and most sickening role.Sean Malin, Vulture, 5 Sep. 2024
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The yearling scrambled back up its tree, then let go and fell, landing with a sickening thud.Paige Williams, The New Yorker, 25 Nov. 2024
Thesaurus Entries Near appalling
Cite this Entry
“Appalling.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/appalling. Accessed 22 Dec. 2024.
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