Stupefaction
/ˌstjuːpɪˈfækʃən/noun
The state of being shocked, stunned, or made unable to think clearly.
Did you know?Stupefaction comes from Latin *stupere* (“to be stunned, amazed, benumbed”), the same ancient root behind *stupid* and *stupor*, so its history is basically the vocabulary of being spiritually and mentally frozen.
Etymological Timeline
Proto-Indo-European
PIE
*steup-
“to be stunned, strike, push”
Latin
Latin
stupēre
“to be stunned, amazed, benumbed”
Latin
Latin
stupefactiō
“a making stunned; bewilderment”
Middle English
English
stupefaccion
“stunning, amazement, bewilderment”
Modern English
English
stupefaction
“the state of being shocked or mentally dulled”
Explore more surprising origins