英语高级词汇：aghast

词义

读音：aghast /ə'gæst/

词义：惊呆的，惊恐的

词性：形容词

级别：GRE

出处：出自拉古英语 gæstan (惊吓)，字面是"被鬼魂 (ghost) 吓到"。它专指因极度恐惧或震惊而目瞪口呆的状态，比 surprised 程度深得多，常伴有生理上的僵直。

用法

The villagers were aghast at the sight of the dragon. 村民们看到巨龙时，吓得魂飞魄散。 She stared, aghast, as the vase shattered on the floor. 看着花瓶在地上摔碎，她惊得目瞪口呆。 The jury was aghast by the brutality of the crime. 陪审团被罪行的残暴程度震惊了。 She stood aghast as her toddler ran into the busy street. 看着蹒跚学步的孩子冲进车流，她惊得僵在原地。 The audience was aghast when the magician sawed his assistant in half. 当魔术师将助手锯成两半时，观众们吓得目瞪口呆。 They were aghast to find their home ransacked by burglars. 看到家被窃贼翻得一片狼藉，他们惊得浑身发冷。 I was aghast that such a simple mistake could cause the entire system to crash. 一个如此低级的错误竟导致全系统崩溃，我简直不敢相信。

近义

Aghast 近义词按难度级别由低到高：

中学 shocked /ʃɑːkt/：震惊的 astonished /ə'stɑːnɪʃt/：震惊的 四六级 horrified /'hɔ:rɪfaɪd/：惊恐的 appalled /ə'pɔ:ld/：惊恐的 dismayed /dɪs'meɪd/：恐慌的 stunned /stʌnd/：目瞪口呆的 staggered /'stægərd/：惊愕的 出国 astounded /ə'stəʊndɪd/：震惊的 无级别 thunderstruck /'θʌndərstrʌk/：惊愕的 wide-eyed /waɪd'aɪd/：吃惊的 shell-shocked /'ʃelʃɑːkt/：不知所措的 open-mouthed /əʊpən'maʊðd/：目瞪口呆的 gobsmacked /'gɑːbsmækt/：目瞪口呆的 flabbergasted /'flæbərgæstɪd/：目瞪口呆的

*Shell-shocked 最初是一个军事医学术语，特指士兵因遭受近距离的炮弹爆炸冲击波，或因持续处于炮火环境而产生的战斗应激反应。症状包括：震颤，失语，失忆，瘫痪，噩梦，极度焦虑等。
现在，这个词在非正式语境中，常用来形容一个人因经历了极端恐怖，震惊或压力事件后，所表现出的茫然麻木，不知所措的精神状态。

同源

Aghast 词根 ghost 表示"精神，幽灵"，常见同源词：

ghost /gəʊst/：鬼 (n.) ghastly /'gæstlɪ/：可怕的 (a.) zeitgeist：时代精神/思潮 (n.)

影视

△Jane Eyre (《简·爱》2011)

小说

以下文字摘自挪威籍英国作家罗尔德·达尔(Roald Dahl) 的《查理和巧克力工厂》(Charlie and the Chocolate Factory) 第18章《顺巧克力河而下》(Down the Chocolate River)。

The boat sped on down the river. The river was getting narrower. There was some kind of a dark tunnel ahead – a great round tunnel that looked like an enormous pipe – and the river was running right into the tunnel. And so was the boat! "Row on!" shouted Mr Wonka, jumping up and waving his stick in the air. "Full speed ahead!" And with the Oompa-Loompas rowing faster than ever, the boat shot into the pitch-dark tunnel, and all the passengers screamed with excitement. "How can they see where they're going?" shrieked Violet Beauregarde in the darkness. "There's no knowing where they're going!" cried Mr Wonka, hooting with laughter. "He's gone off his rocker!" shouted one of the fathers, aghast, and the other parents joined in the chorus of frightened shouting. "He's crazy!" they shouted. 船飞快地顺流而下。河道愈来愈窄。前面有条黑暗的隧道——一条巨大的圆隧道，看上去像一根大管子。河一直通到隧道里去。船也跟着进去了！“使劲划！”旺卡先生大叫，跳起来举起手杖在空中挥舞，“全速前进！”那些奥帕-伦帕人划得比先前更快了。船冲进漆黑的隧道，所有乘船的人紧张得尖叫起来。 “他们怎么能看到路呢？”维奥莉特·博雷加德在黑暗中尖声问道。 “根本不知道他们要往哪里去！”旺卡先生大笑着叫道。 “他发狂了！”其中一个爸爸叫起来。他吓呆了，其他的爸爸妈妈也加入了这场害怕的大叫之中。“他疯了！”他们叫道。

△2005年，蒂姆·伯顿 (Tim Burton) 执导，强尼·德普 (Johnny Depp) 主演的同名电影