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Aghast vs Appall - What's the difference?

aghast | appall |

As an adjective aghast

is terrified; struck with amazement; showing signs of terror or horror.

As a verb appall is

to depress or discourage with fear; to impress with fear in such a manner that the mind shrinks, or loses its firmness; to inundate with sudden terror or horror; to dismay.

aghast

English

Adjective

(en adjective)
  • Terrified; struck with amazement; showing signs of terror or horror.
  • * 1902 , The Hound of the Baskervilles by Arthur Conan Doyle.
    • And while the revellers stood aghast at the fury of the man, one more wicked or, it may be, more drunken than the rest, cried out that they should put the hounds upon her.
  • * 1985 , Les Misérables , the song "Red and Black"
    • I am agog! I am aghast ! Is Marius in love at last?
  • * 2013 , Daniel Taylor, Rickie Lambert's debut goal gives England victory over Scotland'' (in ''The Guardian , 14 August 2013)[http://www.theguardian.com/football/2013/aug/14/england-scotland-international-friendly]
    • Hart, for one, will not remember the night for Lambert's heroics. Morrison, not closed down quickly enough, struck his shot well but England's No1 will be aghast at the way it struck his gloves then skidded off his knees and into the net.

    Anagrams

    *

    appall

    English

    Alternative forms

    * appal (occasionally in Commonwealth English)

    Verb

    (en verb)
  • To depress or discourage with fear; to impress with fear in such a manner that the mind shrinks, or loses its firmness; to inundate with sudden terror or horror; to dismay.
    • The sight appalled the stoutest heart.
  • * Edward Hyde Claredon
    • The house of peers was somewhat appalled at this alarum.
  • (obsolete) To make pale; to blanch.
  • * Wyatt
    • The answer that ye made to me, my dear, / Hath so appalled my countenance.
  • (obsolete) To weaken; to enfeeble; to reduce.
  • * Holland
    • Wine, of its own nature, will not congeal and freeze, only it will lose the strength, and become appalled in extremity of cold.
  • (obsolete) To grow faint; to become weak; to become dismayed or discouraged.
    • (Gower)
  • (obsolete) To lose flavour or become stale.

    • Synonyms

    * dismay, terrify, daunt, frighten, affright, scare, depress * See also