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View synonyms for
take aback
verb
(tr, adverb) to astonish or disconcert
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Idioms and Phrases
Surprise, shock, as in He was taken aback by her caustic remark. This idiom comes from nautical terminology of the mid-1700s, when be taken aback referred to the stalling of a ship caused by a wind shift that made the sails lay back against the masts. Its figurative use was first recorded in 1829.
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Example Sentences
Examples have not been reviewed.
"The prime minister was taken aback. She decided to snub these moves and hasten the passage of the amendment bill in the parliament," writes Prof Raghavan.
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“I’ve been taken aback by the problems that exist and how little has been done.”
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But among those who were taken aback by the announcement was Lt.
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"The response was just so warm. I was quite taken aback by it," says Archer.
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Sir David remembers his first scuba dive on the Great Barrier Reef way back in 1957: "I was so taken aback by the spectacle before me I forgot – momentarily – to breathe."
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