appallment

Etymology

From appall + -ment. This word is likely a nonce; Oliver Wendell Holmes claimed to have coined it, but there are uses that predate Holmes and others that are unlikely to have picked it up from his use.

appallment means shock or depression occasioned by terror or disgust; dismay; the state of being appalled. Lexicurio rates it Sui generis — a strength score of 87 out of 100.

Why “appallment” is a great word

APPALLMENT — [Noun] A profound state of shock, horror, and despondency occasioned by terror or moral disgust. From the verb 'appall' (meaning to horrify or shock, from Middle English *apallen*, from Old French *apalir*, 'to grow pale') + the noun-forming suffix '-ment' (denoting an action, state, or result). The word is noted as likely a nonce formation; Oliver Wendell Holmes claimed to have coined it, but earlier uses exist. Unlike 'dismay,' which suggests a faltering of resolve, or 'astonishment,' which can be neutral wonder, appallment is the specific, chilling paralysis born of moral outrage. It is the blood draining from the face at a casual cruelty, the leaden weight in the chest upon a profound betrayal, the hollow chill that lingers after an unthinkable verdict—the pallor of the soul made manifest.

noun

Shock or depression occasioned by terror or disgust; dismay; the state of being appalled.“the furious slaughter of them was a great discouragement and appallment to the rest: that there died upon the place all the chieftains”