poleaxing

Verb

poleaxe (third-person singular simple present poleaxes, present participle poleaxing, simple past and past participle poleaxed)

1. (transitive) To fell someone with, or as if with, a poleaxe.
2. (figuratively, transitive) To astonish; to shock or surprise utterly.
   • Lisa Griffin, who runs Brew Rock and an Irish pub in nearby Benidorm, was as poleaxed by the announcement as her customers were.2020 July 26, Sam Jones, “'Everyone is panicking': UK quarantine decision shocks Britons in Spain”, in The Guardian
3. (figuratively, transitive) To stymie, thwart, cripple, paralyze.
   • After a lacklustre campaign that has failed to grapple with Germany’s looming problems, the world should expect post-election coalition talks to last for months, poleaxing European politics while they drag on.2021 September 25, Zanny Minton Beddoes, “The Mess Merkel leaves behind”, in The Economist

See all 5 meanings of poleaxe