Stupor
/ˈstjuː.pər/noun
A state of greatly dulled or suspended sensibility, or near-unconsciousness.
Did you know?In Latin, *stupor* was linked to being stunned or paralyzed by shock, and it survives in modern words like *stupid* and *stupendous*, where the same root once carried the sense of being struck dumb with awe.
Etymological Timeline
Proto-Indo-European
PIE
*steup-
“to strike, push, or thrust”
Classical Latin
Latin
stupēre
“to be stunned, amazed, or numb”
Classical Latin
Latin
stupor
“numbness, insensibility, astonishment”
Old French
Old French
stupor
“stupor, numbness, astonishment”
14th Century
English
stupor
“a state of mental or physical numbness; insensibility”
Modern English
English
stupor
“a state of greatly dulled awareness or near-unconsciousness”
Explore more surprising origins