Meanings
nounshock to the system (plural shocks to the system)
plural shocks to the system
- idiomaticsomething 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
Cite this entry
APA
shock to the system. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 5, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/shock%20to%20the%20system
MLA
“shock to the system.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/shock%20to%20the%20system. Accessed November 5, 2026.
Chicago
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “shock to the system,” accessed November 5, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/shock%20to%20the%20system.
Source: shock to the system on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.