I. ˈshäk noun
( -s )
Etymology: Middle English; akin to Middle Dutch schoc, schocke heap, pile, group of sixty, Middle Low German schok shock, group of sixty, Old Saxon scok group of sixty, Middle High German schoc heap, pile, group of sixty, schoche haystack, German dialect (Switzerland) hock heap, pile, Old English hēah high — more at high
1.
a. : a pile or assemblage of usually 8 to 16 sheaves of grain (as wheat) set up in a field with the butt ends down and one or two of the sheaves often broken to serve as a cap to protect the tops from weather — called also stook
b. : a somewhat conical stack of separate stalks of corn
c. chiefly dialect : a pile of hay : haycock
2.
[probably from Middle Dutch schoc, schocke or Middle Low German schok ]
archaic : a group or lot of 60 pieces
II. verb
( -ed/-ing/-s )
Etymology: Middle English schocken, from schock, n.
transitive verb
: to collect or make up into a shock
on vacations he shocked wheat and had other jobs — Current Biography
intransitive verb
: to build shocks
III. noun
( -s )
Usage: often attributive
Etymology: Middle French choc, from choquer to strike against, shock — more at shock IV
1.
a. : the impact or encounter of individuals or groups in battle, charge, or joust
b. : the concentration of effort upon the force of impact in a battle (as in an armored or cavalry attack or close personal contact in an assault)
the lack of tanks deprives the airborne force of one of its major means of shock action — H.A.Jordan
the defenders created small shock … groups for the house-to-house fighting required there — Infantry Journal
c. : the bringing to bear of concentrated effort upon a special objective
shock workers whose output is very high and who develop new speed production methods — T.P.Whitney
2.
a.
(1) : a violent shake or jar : blow , collision , concussion
the shock of tides that fall upon a crumbling shore — Francis Stuart
banging the door with a shock that made the house rattle — Arnold Bennett
(2) : an oscillation, loss of equilibrium, or other effect of such violence
b.
(1) : earthquake
(2) : the impact of an earth vibration (as an earthquake)
3.
a.
(1) : a disturbance in the equilibrium or permanence of an institution or organized entity
the transition from the roles of childhood to those of adult life is accomplished with little shock to the personality — Ralph Linton
(2) : a sudden or violent disturbance in the mental or emotional faculties
the shock and elation of victory and defeat — Oscar Handlin
fresh shocks of wonder at the unaccountable apparition — George Meredith
(3) : a sense of outrage to one's convictions especially of morality or propriety
terms that in better districts would have caused disgust and shock — Ruth Park
b. : something that causes outrage, horror, stupefaction, or disturbance or agitation in an institution, person, or organized system
the further shock of weaning — Henry Wynmalen
he was liable not only to the shock of outward circumstance but of inward impulses — Havelock Ellis
ready the nation for that economic shock — New Republic
4.
a. : a state of profound depression of the vital processes of the body characterized by pallor, rapid but weak pulse, rapid and shallow respiration, restlessness, anxiety or mental dullness, nausea or vomiting associated with reduced total blood volume and low blood pressure and subnormal temperature resulting from severe especially crushing injuries, hemorrhage, burns, major surgery, or other causes
the patient was admitted to the hospital in shock
b. : a state induced for therapeutic purposes (as by the injection of a drug)
insulin shock
— compare shock therapy
5. : sudden stimulation of the nerves or convulsive contraction of the muscles accompanied by a feeling of concussion that is caused by the discharge through the animal body of electricity from a charged body — compare electroshock therapy
6.
a. : a stroke of paralysis : apoplexy
b. : a condition resulting from or associated with myocardial infarction ; specifically : coronary thrombosis
7. : an acute disturbance of the physiology of a plant caused by extremes of temperature or moisture or by parasitic organisms or viruses and often marked or followed by reduction of yield or loss of leaves and fruit
8. : shock absorber
Synonyms: see impact
IV. verb
( -ed/-ing/-s )
Etymology: Middle French choquer, from Old French choquier, chuquier, probably of Germanic origin; akin to Middle Dutch schocken to shake, jolt, schocke swing, Old Saxon skogka, Middle High German schoc, schocke
transitive verb
1.
a. obsolete : to disorganize or cause to waver by a sudden violent attack
b. obsolete : to charge or assault suddenly and violently : assail
2.
a. : to strike with surprise, terror, horror, or disgust : strongly affect : offend , astonish , scandalize
the individual who may be shocked by the expression of an unfamiliar or unpopular opinion — Saturday Review
many audiences are shocked by the sounds of new compositions — Goddard Lieberson
b. : to cause to undergo a physical or nervous shock
c. : to subject (the body or a body part) to the action of an electrical discharge so as to cause a more or less violent nervous and muscular response
3.
a. : to cause to disappear or depart by or as if by a shock
his sense of humor was shocked out of him for the moment — Archibald Marshall
b. : to drive by or as if by a shock
a way of shocking the reader into realizing that both sides … have gone all-out in their savagery — Bruce Bliven b. 1916
intransitive verb
1. : to meet with a shock : come together in violent encounter : collide
her teeth shocked against each other — Dorothy Baker
2. : to cause or arouse astonishment, offense, horror, or fear
the subject is meant to shock rather than attract — Herbert Read
V. noun
( -s )
Etymology: perhaps from shock (I)
1. or shock dog : a dog with long coarse hair
2. : a thick bushy mass
an untidy shock of thick gray hair — Hamilton Basso
VI. adjective
: bushy , shaggy
the shock headdress of hair besmeared with mutton fat — C.G.Seligman
VII.
chiefly dialect
variant of shuck
VIII. noun
( -s )
Etymology: origin unknown
: a silvered pane of window glass
shock mirror