startling

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

The orchestra is famed for taking startling chances on charismatic, emerging but inexperienced conductors of exceptional talent who reached greatness and became dazzling stars over long tenures.

From Los Angeles Times • May 26, 2026

Over 1,200 companies were taking part in the expo, according to organisers, plying their wares to the tens of thousands of attendees there for a startling variety of motives.

From Barron's • May 21, 2026

No one is in mourning for that, not even daughter Deborah Brashers, whose recollections about childhood with a criminal father are startling.

From The Wall Street Journal • May 19, 2026

You could call this a startling reversal, given that Labour won an enormous parliamentary majority in the British general election less than two years ago.

From Salon • May 12, 2026

Carmel was mildly startling after Centralia—a busy little town, nicely old-fashioned, with traffic on Main Street and sidewalks full of shoppers and other townsfolk going about their business.

From "A Walk in the Woods" by Bill Bryson