Meaning & use
culture shock
Last updated
Meanings
noununcountable
The feeling of confusion or anxiety that people get when they live in a culture very different from their own.
Grammar: Uncountable; often used with 'experience', 'get', or 'suffer from'.
Patterns
- experience culture shock
- get culture shock
- a bit of culture shock
She experienced culture shock when she moved to Japan for work.
Many students get culture shock during their first month abroad.
noununcountable
A feeling of surprise and disorientation caused by an unfamiliar way of life, even briefly.
Grammar: Can be used with 'a' when talking about a particular instance: 'It was a real culture shock.'
Patterns
- be a culture shock
- come as a culture shock
The food and customs were a real culture shock at first.
Moving from a small town to a big city came as a culture shock.
Common combinations
- experience culture shock
- Many travelers experience culture shock in their first week.
- get culture shock
- He got culture shock after moving to a rural village.
- a bit of culture shock
- There was a bit of culture shock when she started her new job.
- suffer from culture shock
- Some exchange students suffer from culture shock for months.
Synonyms and how they differ
- disorientation
- 'Disorientation' is a general feeling of confusion; 'culture shock' specifically comes from unfamiliar cultural surroundings.
- homesickness
- 'Homesickness' is missing home, while 'culture shock' is about struggling with a new culture.
Word family
- culture noun
- The customs and way of life of a group.
- shock noun
- A sudden upsetting or surprising event or feeling.
Commonly confused: culture shock or cultural shock?
culture shock vs cultural shock
This is a common mistake. The standard phrase is 'culture shock', not 'cultural shock'.
Practice
Complete the sentence: 'When she first arrived in Brazil, she experienced a lot of ____.'
Choose one answer.
'Culture shock' is the standard uncountable phrase and fits after 'a lot of'. 'Cultural shock' is a common error; 'culture shocks' is not used; 'a culture shock' would need a singular context like 'It was a culture shock.'
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “culture shock”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.