Dictionary
Words, grammatical forms and meanings linked to the ontology.
shock to the system en · NOUN
Meanings
-
(idiomatic) something that has a sudden and usually unpleasant effect on someone.
One former inmate, “Jason”, spoke of his stays in seven different institutions between the ages of 14 and 17. “At first it was a bit of a shock to the system not having your family around, and then I got used to it,” he said.
2020 July 23, Chris Daw, “'A stain on national life': why are we locking up so many children?'”, in The Guardian:
Forms