consternation

English

WOTD – 5 December 2009

Etymology

From French consternation, from Latin consternātiō.

Pronunciation

• (UK) IPA^(key): /ˌkɒn.stəˈneɪ.ʃən/
• (US) enPR: kŏnʹstər.nā'shən, IPA^(key): /ˌkɑn.stɚˈneɪ.ʃən/

• Audio (US):

  (file)

• Audio (General Australian):

  (file)

• Rhymes: -eɪʃən

Noun

consternation (countable and uncountable, plural consternations)

1. Amazement or horror that confounds the faculties, and incapacitates for reflection; terror, combined with amazement; dismay.
   • 1899, Kate Chopin, The Awakening:

     "Out!" exclaimed her husband, with something like genuine consternation in his voice.

   • 2003, Terrance Dicks, Barry Letts, chapter 17, in Deadly Reunion:

     Their audience had been listening in increasing consternation.

   • February 27, 2006, Chuck Klosterman, “Invention's New Mother”, in Esquire‎^[1]:

     It was probably worth four millennia of consternation and regret.

Related terms

• consternate

Translations

amazement or horror; terror, combined with amazement; dismay

• Armenian: սարսափ (hy) (sarsapʻ), ահ (hy) (ah), զարհուրանք (hy) (zarhurankʻ)
• Bulgarian: смайване (bg) n (smajvane), ужас (bg) m (užas)
• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 驚愕／惊愕 (zh) (jīng'è)

• Czech: konsternace f
• Danish: bestyrtelse c
• Dutch: consternatie (nl) f, verbijstering (nl) f
• Finnish: tyrmistys (fi)
• French: consternation (fr) f, sidération (fr) f, accablement (fr) m, prostration (fr) f
• German: Bestürzung (de) f, Fassungslosigkeit (de) f
• Greek: τρόμος (el) m (trómos), ανησυχία (el) f (anisychía)

  Ancient Greek: ἔκπληξις f (ékplēxis)

• Hebrew: תַּדְהֵמָה (he), בִּלְבּוּל (he), חֲרָדָה (he), פַּחַד (he)
• Hungarian: megdöbbenés (hu), szörnyülködés, megrökönyödés (hu)
• Irish: anbhá m
• Italian: costernazione (it) f
• Japanese: 驚愕 (ja) (きょうがく, kyōgaku), 狼狽 (ja) (rōbai)
• Korean: 대경실색(大驚失色) (daegyeongsilsaek)
• Latin: consternātiō f
• Malayalam: പരിഭ്രാന്തി (ml) (paribhrānti)
• Manx: ard-yindys m
• Maori: pororaru, pōraruraru
• Norwegian:

  Bokmål: bestyrtelse m

• Polish: konsternacja (pl) f
• Portuguese: consternação (pt) f
• Romanian: consternație (ro) f, consternare (ro) f
• Russian: у́жас (ru) m (úžas), оцепене́ние (ru) n (ocepenénije), испу́г (ru) m (ispúg)
• Scottish Gaelic: maoim f
• Serbo-Croatian: preneraženost (sh) f
• Spanish: consternación (es) f, abatimiento (es), postración (es)
• Swedish: bestörtning (sv), häpnad (sv)
• Turkish: dehşet (tr)
• Yiddish: קאָנסטערנאַציע f (konsternatsye)

French

Etymology

Borrowed from Latin cōnsternātiōnem. Morphologically, from consterner +‎ -ation.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /kɔ̃s.tɛʁ.na.sjɔ̃/

• Audio:

  (file)

Noun

consternation f (plural consternations)

1. consternation
   • 1957, Thomas Baudouin, Iñés, Nouvelles Éditions Latines, page 4:

     Un soir pluvieux, Corinne laissa entendre qu’elle était amoureuse. J’allais m’en montrer consterné mais je craignis que ma consternation ne prêtât à confusion et ne fût mal interprétée : il ne fallait pas qu’elle m’imaginât épris d’elle.

     One rainy day, Corinne hinted that she was in love. I was about to show dismay about it, but I feared that my dismay would lead to confusion and be misinterpreted. She should not imagine me in love with her.

Descendants

• English: consternation

Further reading

• “consternation”, in Trésor de la langue française informatisé [Digitized Treasury of the French Language], 2012.