Basic Details
Word: Aghast
Part of Speech: Adjective
Meaning: Filled with sudden shock and horror.
Synonyms: horrified, appalled, shocked, stunned
Antonyms: calm, unmoved, pleased
How to Spell Aghast
Syllables: a - ghast
Tricky part: The h is silent, so students write agast. There is no e at the end.
Watch out for: agast, aghaste, agahst
Memory tip: Seeing a ghost would leave anyone aghast, and both words have the gh pair. Write a + gh + ast.
Usage Examples
Example 1: We were aghast when we saw that the flood had washed away the bridge.
Example 2: Amma stood aghast at the state of the kitchen after our cooking experiment.
Example 3: The audience sat aghast as the magician appeared to saw his assistant in half.
Fun Fact
Aghast was once spelt agast, from an old verb gast, meaning to frighten. Ghastly comes from the same root.
Practise the CREST Way
Word Connection
Choose the synonym of the word aghast as used in the sentence:
The tourists were aghast to see plastic waste piled high on the beautiful beach.
a) horrified
b) bored
c) relaxed
d) delighted
Show answer
a) horrified. Aghast means struck with horror, so horrified is the match.
Word Cookie
Find the extra letter in the word:
aghaste
a) a
b) h
c) s
d) e
Show answer
d) e. Aghast ends in a plain st, with no silent e after it.
Spell-o-Spell
Only one of these words is spelt correctly. Choose its meaning:
1. myserious 2. aghast 3. mischevous 4. sillouette
a) filled with sudden shock and horror
b) playfully naughty
c) a dark outline seen against a light background
d) strange and hard to explain
Show answer
a) filled with sudden shock and horror. Mysterious needs a t, mischievous has ie and silhouette has lh; aghast is the correct one.
Mingle-Mangle
Unjumble the letters in the sentence to form a meaningful word:
Mother was hgatas when she saw the muddy footprints on the white sofa.
a) aghast
b) ghosts
c) hasten
d) gashes
Show answer
a) aghast. Two a's with g, h, s and t: these six letters make aghast.
Multiple Choice Questions
1. You would most likely feel aghast if you ____.
a) ate your favourite food
b) met an old friend
c) saw a road accident
d) won a prize
Show answer
c) saw a road accident
2. Ravi opened his report card and stood aghast. He was most likely ____.
a) sleepy after lunch
b) bored by his marks
c) proud of his marks
d) shocked by his marks
Show answer
d) shocked by his marks
