wonder definition | Dictionary.com

won⋅der

[wuhn-der]

–verb (used without object)

1.	to think or speculate curiously: to wonder about the origin of the solar system.

2.	to be filled with admiration, amazement, or awe; marvel (often fol. by at): He wondered at her composure in such a crisis.

3.	to doubt: I wonder if she'll really get here.

–verb (used with object)

4.	to speculate curiously or be curious about; be curious to know: to wonder what happened.

5.	to feel wonder at: I wonder that you went.

–noun

6.	something strange and surprising; a cause of surprise, astonishment, or admiration: That building is a wonder. It is a wonder he declined such an offer.

7.	the emotion excited by what is strange and surprising; a feeling of surprised or puzzled interest, sometimes tinged with admiration: He felt wonder at seeing the Grand Canyon.

8.	miraculous deed or event; remarkable phenomenon.

—Idiom

9.	for a wonder, as the reverse of what might be expected; surprisingly: For a wonder, they worked hard all day.

Origin:
bef. 900; (n.) ME; OE wundor; c. D wonder, G Wunder, ON undr; (v.) ME wonderen, OE wundrian, deriv. of the n.

Related forms:

won⋅der⋅er, noun

won⋅der⋅less, adjective

Synonyms:
1. conjecture, meditate, ponder, question. 5. marvel. 7. surprise, astonishment, amazement, bewilderment, awe.

Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
Cite This Source

Link To wonder

won·der (wŭn'dər)

1. One that arouses awe, astonishment, surprise, or admiration; a marvel: "The decision of one age or country is a wonder to another" (John Stuart Mill).
2. The emotion aroused by something awe-inspiring, astounding, or marvelous: gazed with wonder at the northern lights.
An event inexplicable by the laws of nature; a miracle.
A feeling of puzzlement or doubt.
often Wonder A monumental human creation regarded with awe, especially one of seven monuments of the ancient world that appeared on various lists of late antiquity.

v. won·dered, won·der·ing, won·ders

v. intr.

1. To have a feeling of awe or admiration; marvel: "She wondered at all the things civilization can teach a woman to endure" (Frances Newman).
2. To have a feeling of surprise.
To be filled with curiosity or doubt.

v. tr.
To feel curiosity or be in doubt about: wondered what happened.
adj.

1. Arousing awe or admiration.
2. Wonderful.
Far superior to anything formerly recognized or foreseen.

[Middle English, from Old English wundor.]
won'der·er n.

Synonyms: These nouns denote one that evokes amazement or admiration: saw the wonders of Paris; a marvel of modern technology; a miracle of culinary art; a phenomenon of medical science; a musical prodigy; the theatrical sensation of the season.

The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
Cite This Source

Wonder

Won"der\, n. [OE. wonder, wunder, AS. wundor; akin to D. wonder, OS. wundar, OHG. wuntar, G. wunder, Icel. undr, Sw. & Dan. under, and perhaps to Gr. ? to gaze at.]

1. That emotion which is excited by novelty, or the presentation to the sight or mind of something new, unusual, strange, great, extraordinary, or not well understood; surprise; astonishment; admiration; amazement.

They were filled with wonder and amazement at that which had happened unto him. --Acts iii. 10.

Wonder is the effect of novelty upon ignorance. --Johnson.

Note: Wonder expresses less than astonishment, and much less than amazement. It differs from admiration, as now used, in not being necessarily accompanied with love, esteem, or approbation.

2. A cause of wonder; that which excites surprise; a strange thing; a prodigy; a miracle. " Babylon, the wonder of all tongues." --Milton.

To try things oft, and never to give over, doth wonders. --Bacon.

I am as a wonder unto many. --Ps. lxxi. 7.

Seven wonders of the world. See in the Dictionary of Noted Names in Fiction.

Wonder

Won"der\, v. i. [imp. & p. p. Wondered; p. pr. & vb. n. Wondering.] [AS. wundrian.]

1. To be affected with surprise or admiration; to be struck with astonishment; to be amazed; to marvel.

I could not sufficiently wonder at the intrepidity of these diminutive mortals. --Swift.

We cease to wonder at what we understand. --Johnson.

2. To feel doubt and curiosity; to wait with uncertain expectation; to query in the mind; as, he wondered why they came.

I wonder, in my soul, What you would ask me, that I should deny. --Shak.

Wonder

Won"der\, a. Wonderful. [Obs.] --Gower.

After that he said a wonder thing. --Chaucer.

Wonder

Won"der\, adv. Wonderfully. [Obs.] --Chaucer.

Language Translation for : wonder

Spanish: admiración, asombro,

German: die Verwunderung,

Japanese: 驚き

More Translations »

wonder (n.)

O.E. wundor "marvelous thing, marvel, the object of astonishment," from P.Gmc. *wundran (cf. O.S. wundar, M.Du., Du. wonder, O.H.G. wuntar, Ger. wunder, O.N. undr), of unknown origin. In M.E. it also came to mean the emotion associated with such a sight (c.1290). The verb is from O.E. wundrian. Used colloquially in Pennsylvania Ger. areas in some transitive senses (It wonders me that ... for "I wonder why ..."); this was common in M.E. and as late as Tindale (1533), and I am told by a correspondent that the usage also yet survives in Yorkshire/Lincolnshire. Wonderful is recorded from c.1100. Wonderland "imaginary realm" is from 1790; wonder-worker (1599) translates Gk. thaumatourgos.

wonder

In addition to the idiom beginning with wonder, also see for a wonder; no wonder; work wonders.

WONDER
Wide-ranging Online Data for Epidemiologic Research

Search another word or see wonder on Thesaurus | Reference

New 7 Wonders
The new seven wonders of the world were announced recently.

NationalGeographic.com

About · Privacy Policy · Terms of Use · Advertise with Us · Link to Us · NASCAR® · Contact Us