aghast

English dictionary entry

Meanings

adj

Terrified; struck with amazement; showing signs of terror or horror.

Pronunciation

/əˈɡæst/ /əˈɡɑːst/ /əˈɡast/ LL-Q1860 (eng)-Naomi Persephone Amethyst (NaomiAmethyst)-aghast.wav LL-Q1860 (eng)-Vealhurl-aghast.wav

Word forms

aghast more aghast most aghast agast

Etymology

From Middle English agast, agasted, past participle of agasten (“to terrify”), from Old English a- (compare with Gothic 𐌿𐍃- (us-), German er-, originally meaning "out") + gæstan (“to terrify, torment”): compare Gothic 𐌿𐍃𐌲𐌰𐌹𐍃𐌾𐌰𐌽 (usgaisjan, “to terrify”, literally “to fix, to root to the spot with terror”); akin to Latin haerere (“to stick fast, cling”). By surface analysis, a- + ghast/gast. See gaze.

Derived words

aghastness unaghast

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