take aback

Trump appeared to be genuinely taken aback for a few seconds, asking: "Am I supposed to read it right now?"

Trump appeared taken aback by the letter, but after taking a minute to read it he said he accepted the invite and that it would be an "honour" to visit the "fantastic" country.

Mathilda agrees, saying she was taken aback by the scale of the problem away from Europe, which she rarely sees reported.

According to Wolff's reporting, Trump was taken aback by the infamous Musk cameo, in which he bounced across the stage making an X with his arms and legs.

Even many Republicans, so used to making excuses for Trump's various lies and abuses, were taken aback by Trump's total reversal of victim and abuser.