APPALLING Synonyms: 215 Similar and Opposite Words

appalling 1 of 2

adjective

ə-ˈpȯ-liŋ

Definition of appalling

as in disgusting

causing intense displeasure, disgust, or resentment opening your mouth to show me your half-chewed food is absolutely appalling

Synonyms & Similar Words

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

as in horrific

extremely disturbing or repellent appalling crimes against humanity

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

appalling

2 of 2

verb

present participle of appall

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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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Recent Examples of appalling

Adjective

Most appalling to Graham is our collective inertia, not to say apathy. — Literary Hub, 6 Aug. 2026 Trump paid them substandard wages, and their working conditions were appalling. — Kai Bird, New Yorker, 3 Aug. 2026

Verb

The young Forster recoiled from the school’s culture of authoritarianism and militaristic chauvinism, which may have found expression in the students’ often appalling attitudes toward their own mothers. — Jessica Winter, New Yorker, 7 May 2026 Of all the recent poster boys for appalling misbehavior by the State Police, Michael Proctor would of course rank number one. — Howie Carr, Boston Herald, 4 Jan. 2026 See All Example Sentences for appalling

Recent Examples of Synonyms for appalling

Adjective

That’s likely to inspire either affection or immediate exhaustion, depending on your fondness for the infamously disgusting performance group.

— Alison Foreman, IndieWire, 8 Oct. 2026
People tend to think of waste as trash, sewage, slag, manure and other seemingly useless or disgusting substances.

— Edward D. Melillo, The Conversation, 30 Sep. 2026

Definition of disgusting

Adjective

My heart goes out to her family, friends, and everyone who is affected by this horrific incident.

— Bill Hutchinson, ABC News, 4 Oct. 2026
In late August, a horrific but fortunately injury-free blaze at the Folsom Flea Market wreaked havoc on a number of small local businesses operating out of the space.

— Aaron Davis, Sacbee.com, 2 Oct. 2026

Definition of horrific

Adjective

When Moore left the game after an awful hit from a USC linebacker, Raiola stepped up and looked even better.

— Ian Miller OutKick, FOXNews.com, 11 Oct. 2026
But coming off the back of that, there was all of this legislation that was pretty awful and generally, there were a lot of homophobic attitudes, still quite extreme, even as late as the 1990s.

— Georg Szalai, HollywoodReporter, 9 Oct. 2026

Definition of awful

Adjective

Against the backdrop of a gruesome day, the Hebrew-language movie unfolds individual emotions and lives both before and during the attack, everyday problems of course not stopping with the tragedy, just interacting with it.

— Steven Zeitchik, HollywoodReporter, 7 Oct. 2026
For centuries, this scene has been believed to show Harold’s gruesome end.

— Alicja Zelazko, Encyclopedia Britannica, 7 Oct. 2026

Definition of gruesome

Adjective

Despite the identically horrible records, these teams are in different places.

— Parker Gabriel, Denver Post, 9 Oct. 2026
In all, the Dodgers drowned out that horrible tomahawk chop with some mighty hacks of their own, winning 3-1 while finally displaying some of the desperation that had been missing.

— Los Angeles Times, Los Angeles Times, 7 Oct. 2026

Definition of horrible

Adjective

And then none of it mattered because his special teams bailed him out with a big kick return (thanks to a terrible decision by Eagles coach Nick Sirianni to even allow a kick return in the first place) followed by a walk-off field goal.

— Dan Zaksheske OutKick, FOXNews.com, 12 Oct. 2026
The story follows the transformation of Adriana (Colin), a woman shattered by a terrible murder and who discovers the strength to start over, driven by an unquenchable thirst for justice.

— Rafa Sales Ross, Variety, 11 Oct. 2026

Definition of terrible

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appalled

appalling

appallingly

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Style

“Appalling.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/appalling. Accessed 14 Oct. 2026.

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Synonyms of appalling

adjective

verb

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