What does appall mean?
To appall is to fill someone with horror, shock, or profound dismay, usually in response to something cruel, violent, disgraceful, or deeply wrong. It is a transitive verb: something appalls someone, and people more often describe themselves as 'appalled by' events than as actively appalling others. The word carries strong emotional weight — it suggests not mere surprise but moral revulsion, which is why it frequently appears in reactions to atrocities, scandals, injustice, and shocking behavior. Common collocations include 'appalled by', 'deeply appalled', and 'utterly appalled'. Derived forms include the adjective 'appalling', describing something horrifically bad, and the adverb 'appallingly'. Interestingly, the word's origin reflects its physical effect: it descends from an Old French expression meaning 'to grow pale', capturing the way horror visibly drains color from the face. Today it remains a standard, widely used term in journalism, commentary, and everyday speech across the English-speaking world.
verbTo appall is to fill someone with horror, shock, or dismay, typically in reaction to something deeply disturbing or morally offensive.
- To fill with horror, shock, or dismay (the only established sense; always used transitively)
"The conditions inside the factory appalled the inspectors."
"We were appalled by the devastation we saw on the news."
"Her callous treatment of the staff appalled everyone in the office."
The word 'appall' literally means 'to turn pale' — it comes from an Old French phrase describing how horror drains the color from your face.
Reviewed by Deb Chak, Editor. AI-assisted content curated by RJS Tech Solutions LLP.
Etymology of appall
Appall entered English in the late Middle Ages (attested by the late 15th century) from the Old French phrase 'apalir', meaning 'to grow pale or blanch'. The underlying root is the Latin verb 'pallere', 'to be pale', which also gives English 'pale', 'pallid', and 'pallor'. The original image was literal: horror so great that it drained the color from one's face. Over time the verb shifted from this physical description to denote the emotion itself — overwhelming shock and dismay — while retaining its vivid etymological connection to visible fear.
Related word forms
How appall is actually used
Almost always used in the passive sense ('was appalled', 'were appalled') rather than actively; the base form appears mainly in constructions like 'it appalls me that...'. The word carries a strong negative connotation and suits both formal and everyday registers. British spelling is identical; 'appal' without the second 'l' is a rare variant.
Easily confused with appall
Appeal means to make an earnest request or to be attractive, while appall means to fill with horror or dismay — they differ by one letter but are nearly opposite in meaning.