astonish
Americanverb (used with object)
-
astonishes,
present (3rd person singular)
-
astonished,
past participle, past
-
astonishing
present participle
verb
Synonym Usage
See surprise.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
-
astonishsimple
-
astonishessimple
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have astonishedperfect
-
has astonishedperfect
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am astonishingprogressive
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are astonishingprogressive
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is astonishingprogressive
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have been astonishingperfect progressive
-
has been astonishingperfect progressive
Past
-
astonishedsimple
-
had astonishedperfect
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was astonishingprogressive
-
were astonishingprogressive
-
had been astonishingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of astonish
First recorded in 1525–35; Middle English astonyen, astonen, probably from unattested dialectal Old French astoner, Old French estoner, from unattested Vulgar Latin extonāre, for Latin attonāre “to strike with lightning,” equivalent to ex- ex- 1, at- at- + tonāre “to thunder”; extended by -ish 2, perhaps reflecting unattested Anglo-French astonir, from dialectal Old French; see thunder
Explanation
Things that might astonish you: the discovery of life on another planet, a death-defying performance, and the number of dinosaurs a six-year old child can name. To astonish is to amaze and astound. Remember that astonish means more than surprised. It carries with it a feeling of being truly impressed. Astonish derives from the Latin tonare 'thunder.' When you are astonished, you're thunderstruck. If you plan to astonish someone, you might say before hand, "Wait until you see this. It's going to knock your socks off."
Vocabulary lists containing astonish
"Julius Caesar" by William Shakespeare, Act I
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
Investment in artificial intelligence continues to astonish amid a technological arms race.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 6, 2025
Maggie Smith never failed to illuminate and astonish.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 9, 2024
Bouden added that “I have a lot of hope that Tunisia is going to get better and better, and it will accomplish things that will probably astonish you in the coming months.”
From Seattle Times ● Jan. 19, 2023
Such arguments astonish educators who have found ways to accelerate children successfully.
From Washington Post ● Oct. 16, 2022
Their presence in Africa would astonish us, if the presence of Indonesian people on Madagascar had not already alerted us to Africa’s prehistoric Asian connection.
From "Guns, Germs, and Steel: The Fates of Human Societies" by Jared M. Diamond
Throughout Mr. Stob’s narrative, their success astonishes onlookers and converts skeptics.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 29, 2026
"Even today, the story of my father and my mother, while giving me much pain, astonishes me still," Blouin said.
From BBC ● Jan. 6, 2025
“It astonishes me that no American male singer sings with a full voice anymore. Where have all the tenors gone?”
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 25, 2022
In one of the performances of the year, Will Keen, as the Russian leader, astonishes throughout, bringing his character to agitated, unpredictable life.
From New York Times ● Jul. 21, 2022
The bridge is beautiful at night, but it’s the city skyline that astonishes me every time I see it.
From "The Sun Is Also a Star" by Nicola Yoon
Launched in the U.S. in 1896, with the New York premiere of Thomas Edison’s Vitascope film projector, silent movies astonished audiences.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 10, 2026
The result astonished him and many observers of Kenyan politics – by the time the registration period ended, 2.6 million new voters across the country had signed up.
From BBC ● Oct. 1, 2026
Isaiah Berlin called Alexander Herzen “a Russian Voltaire,” who astonished his 19th- century audiences with a “prodigal opulence of intellect.”
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 4, 2026
Meyers proceeds to tell an astonished Ed that he’s a huge fan of his long-forgotten 1979 poetry collection entitled “Way Past Go,” the postal worker’s fleeting brush with literary success.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 14, 2026
“It worked! It worked after all!” cried the astonished Fflewddur.
From "The Book of Three" by Lloyd Alexander
On a 10-year view, the difference between buying into the S&P 500 at the best time and buying into it at the worst time was worth an astonishing 25% per year.
From MarketWatch ● Oct. 29, 2026
Reels of his astonishing skills routinely receive millions of views, and his fame has only risen in the wake of the viral police encounter.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 27, 2026
Slate editor Shannon Palus analyzes the movie’s astonishing magic trick.
From Slate ● Oct. 26, 2026
Brook's 202 in England's defeat against Sri Lanka was an astonishing display of stroke-making.
From BBC ● Oct. 22, 2026
And it is astonishing, too, to think of how long life is—how much longer life is than that one word, one minute, one month.
From "The Brightwood Code" by Monica Hesse
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