shocking
/ˈʃɑkɪŋ/adjective, noun, verb
shocking is spelled S-H-O-C-K-I-N-G: 8 letters and 2 syllables. It appears 13 times per million words in written English, the 6,047th most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As an adjective, shocking means “Inspiring shock; startling” (English Wiktionary, September 2026).
How many letters and syllables are in shocking?
| Letters | 8: S-H-O-C-K-I-N-G |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 2 (from its American pronunciation) |
| In writing | 13 times per million words; the 6,047th most frequent word form |
| Wrong spellings searched | none measured in search |
| Rhymes with |
Sources: letters and syllables from the English Wiktionary's hyphenation or pronunciation and the CMU Pronouncing Dictionary; written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media); rhymes and same-letter words are computed by PlainSpell from its own word list.
How common is shocking?
Shocking appears 13 times per million words in written English, the 6,047th most frequent word form in the list.
Source: written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How do you pronounce shocking?
- UK /ˈʃɒkɪŋ/
- US /ˈʃɑkɪŋ/
Shocking has 2 syllables (counted from its American pronunciation in the CMU Pronouncing Dictionary).
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Recordings: En-us-shocking.ogg, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
What rhymes with shocking?
7 words on PlainSpell end in the same sounds as shocking from its last stressed vowel (/ɑkɪŋ/):
Computed by PlainSpell from the pronunciations in the English Wiktionary (dump of September 2, 2026): a rhyme shares every sound from the last stressed vowel to the end; ordered by written frequency (wordfreq 3.1).
Forms of shocking
- more shocking comparative
- most shocking superlative
- shockings plural
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does shocking mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
adjective
- 1
Inspiring shock; startling.
- 2
Unusually obscene or lewd.
- 3
colloquialExtremely bad.
What a shocking calamity!
noun
- 1
The application of an electric shock.
verb
- 1
present participle and gerund of shock
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Shocking in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| French | choquant, offensant |
| German | schrecklich, schockierend |
| Portuguese | chocante |
| Spanish | espantoso, chocante, impactante, shockeante , aberrante , horrible |
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Translations are Wiktionary's, by sense; a linked word has its own PlainSpell page.
Where does shocking come from?
From shock + -ing.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).