shocking
shocking — 形容詞
1. Causing people to feel very upset, offended, or morally outraged because somethi
駭人的
令人反感且震驚的，違反道德的
Causing people to feel very upset, offended, or morally outraged because something is so wrong or unpleasant.
The documentary revealed the shocking working conditions at the factory.
那部紀錄片揭露了工廠裡駭人的工作環境。
attributive: shocking + noun (working conditions)
Maeve found her colleague's racist remarks absolutely shocking.
Maeve 覺得同事的種族歧視言論非常駭人。
intensifier: absolutely shocking; find + object + shocking
It is shocking that nobody reported the abuse for months.
令人震驚的是，幾個月來竟然沒人通報這起虐待事件。
The newspaper printed shocking details about the prison conditions.
那家報紙刊登了有關監獄條件的駭人細節。
What I found most shocking was the cruelty shown toward the animals.
最讓我震驚的是他們對待那些動物的殘忍方式。
- appalling
Stronger emotional weight; suggests horror or dismay rather than mere offense
- outrageous
Adds a sense of anger and injustice; stronger than shocking
- scandalous
Implies damage to reputation, often involving money, sex, or lies
- disgraceful
Focuses on shameful behaviour that brings loss of respect
- praiseworthy
Describes behaviour that deserves admiration rather than offense
- acceptable
Describes something that meets normal standards of decency
用法筆記
Commonly used with intensifiers such as 'absolutely', 'truly', 'deeply', and 'quite'. Often appears in patterns: find/consider + something + shocking, or it + be + shocking + that-clause.
常見錯誤
2. Used informally to say that something is extremely bad in quality or very unplea
糟透的
品質極差的（非正式用法）
Used informally to say that something is extremely bad in quality or very unpleasant.
The service at that cafe was shocking — we waited over an hour for two cups of tea.
那家咖啡館的服務糟透了——我們等了超過一個小時才喝到兩杯茶。
predictive use: be + shocking; informal register marker
Eshe gave a shocking performance in the play and forgot most of her lines.
Eshe 在話劇中表現糟透，連大部分台詞都忘了。
We had shocking weather during our holiday in Scotland last July.
我們去年七月去蘇格蘭度假時遇到了糟透的天氣。
The quality of the furniture was absolutely shocking for the price we paid.
以我們付的價錢來說，那件家具的品質實在是糟透了。
用法筆記
This sense is informal and primarily British. Avoid using it in formal writing, academic essays, or professional contexts. In American English, 'terrible' or 'awful' are more common for this meaning.
常見錯誤
3. So surprising that it leaves someone amazed or unable to react immediately, ofte
驚人的
令人大感驚訝意外的
So surprising that it leaves someone amazed or unable to react immediately, often because events take a completely unexpected turn.
It came as a shocking surprise to learn that Sora had won the national poetry award.
得知 Sora 贏得了全國詩歌獎，真是個驚人的消息。
it + came as a + shocking + surprise + infinitive
The team's defeat was shocking after they had led by three goals with ten minutes left.
那支球隊在領先三球、只剩十分鐘的情況下輸掉比賽，結果非常驚人。
Lucas received shocking news about his scholarship during the middle of class.
Lucas 在上課時收到了關於獎學金的驚人消息。
What the archaeologists found inside the tomb was a shocking discovery that changed history.
考古學家在墓穴中的發現是一項改變歷史的驚人成果。
It is shocking how quickly the river rose after just one night of heavy rain.
僅僅下了一夜的暴雨，河水就漲了那麼高，實在驚人。
- astonishing
Slightly stronger; emphasizes disbelief alongside surprise
- staggering
Suggests something is hard to believe because of its scale or magnitude
- startling
Emphasizes the sudden, unexpected nature of the event
- astounding
Very strong surprise; suggests something is almost beyond belief
- unsurprising
Describes something expected and thus not causing surprise
- predictable
Describes something that could be foreseen easily
用法筆記
Unlike sense 1, this sense carries no moral judgment. The surprise can be positive or neutral, though the word often retains a slight edge of astonishment. Distinguish from sense 1: if the thing also offends moral sensibilities, sense 1 is more appropriate.