Skip to main content
Glite Dictionary
to knock for a loop

to knock for a loop

1 8.7
To surprise someone very much and leave them speechless
  • idiom
  • Informal
translation icon : dejar sorprendido
  • When she heard the unexpected news, it really knocked her for a loop.
  • really knocked me for a loop

I no, she's like this genius talent dancing, singing and knocked me for a loop.

Examples

  • But it would knock your plans for a loop.

    Sabrina (1954)

  • Joan said, "When I told my mother I wanted to attend college, it knocked her for a loop!

    Academic text (2014)

  • You always knock me for a loop.

    Kick-Ass (2010)

  • - How can I knock him for a loop?

    The Dark Half (1993)

  • But you knock them for a loop.

    The Green Mile (1999)

  • I know how you could blow this guy off, really knock him for a loop.

    The Dark Half (1993)

  • You have knocked me for a loop, old man.

    Rambling Rose (1991)

  • Boy, they knocked me for a loop.

    You Can't Take It with You (1938)

  • So little shocks me anymore, but her going to Memphis knocked me for a loop.

    Fiction book (2000)

  • The painkiller Austin was given knocked him for a loop, and he slept almost the entire flight.

    Fiction book (1999)

Synonyms

to shock
vsto knock for a loop
202 2.1

To cause someone to feel sudden surprise and distress

is specifically very strong surprise rather than general unexpectedness
to floor
vsto knock for a loop
15 6.6

To surprise someone so much they cannot react

is similar shock but may not always cause a momentary freeze
to shock the hell out of someone
vsto knock for a loop
  • Informal
2 8.1

To surprise someone suddenly and very strongly

is intense surprise but less coarse in tone and expression
to knock flat
vsto knock for a loop
1 7.4

To surprise someone very much so they cannot react

is great surprise but may be less blunt or physical in effect
to knock over with a feather
vsto knock for a loop
  • Informal
1 8.8

To be so surprised that you almost cannot react

is a very strong surprise that may not freeze someone completely
to knock into the middle of next week
vsto knock for a loop
  • Informal
9.9

To hit or shock someone so they feel dazed

is strong surprise but not necessarily described as forceful or physical
to hit like a lightning bolt
vsto knock for a loop
8.2

To feel sudden shock or surprise

is great surprise but can be less sudden or forceful in impact

Antonyms

to calm
962 1.0

Make a person or animal less upset

How Shocked

to stun
11 3.0
to knock for a loop
  • Informal
1 8.7
to astonish
13 3.5
to startle
131 3.7
to surprise
∞ 1.0

Surface Forms

knock for a loop infinitive
knocked for a loop past
knocked for a loop past participle
knocking for a loop present participle
knocks for a loop third person singular

Morphology

knock + for + a + loop

The sense 'to surprise or shock someone greatly' is not transparently built from the literal meanings of 'knock' (to strike) and 'loop' (a circle); 'for a loop' is an idiomatic particle-like phrase that does not map predictably to 'shock'. A B1 learner who knows the constituent words but has not seen the idiom would very likely not infer this meaning, so the expression is best classified as opaque.

Etymology

Knock for a loop may come from boxing: a hard knock could make a boxer spin around in a loop and feel dazed. That's why it now means 'to surprise or shock someone greatly'.