- present participle of astonish.
astonishing
Americanadjective
adjective
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of astonishing
Explanation
Something astonishing is astounding, staggering, stupefying, amazing, or incredible. It's not something you see every day. This is a pretty strong word. A dog shaking hands is not astonishing, but a dog calling 911 for its owner definitely is. Astonishing things are amazing; they blow your mind. When people first walked on the moon, that was astonishing. Miracles are astonishing. If you say, "Holy cow! I can't believe what I'm seeing," you're probably seeing something astonishing.
Vocabulary lists containing astonishing
Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone
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Nothing But the Truth
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Copper Sun
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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.
"Astonishing - it was enormous to me because for many years I was considering coming, but it was too far," he told BBC News NI.
From BBC • Apr. 28, 2026
Appeared in the November 6, 2025, print edition as 'A Museum’s Astonishing Arrival'.
From The Wall Street Journal • Nov. 5, 2025
Astonishing gusts of 70 to 80 mph blew all of those preconceived notions away.
From Los Angeles Times • Jan. 11, 2025
The work was partially funded by a biotech start up called Astonishing Labs, which aims to harness the technology to treat neurological disease and nerve and spinal cord injuries.
From Science Magazine • Nov. 29, 2023
Astonishing himself and his seamstresses, Shin lost his composure.
From "Escape from Camp 14: One Man's Remarkable Odyssey from North Korea to Freedom in the West" by Blaine Harden
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
