surprise
Americanverb (used with object)
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surprises,
present (3rd person singular)
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surprised,
past participle, past
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surprising
present participle
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to strike or occur to with a sudden feeling of wonder or astonishment, as through unexpectedness.
Her beauty surprised me.
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to come upon or discover suddenly and unexpectedly.
We surprised the children raiding the cookie jar.
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to make an unexpected assault on (an unprepared army, fort, person, etc.).
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to elicit or bring out suddenly and without warning.
to surprise the facts from the witness.
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to lead or bring unawares, as into doing something not intended.
to surprise a witness into telling the truth.
noun
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surprises
plural
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an act or instance of surprising or being surprised.
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something that surprises someone; a completely unexpected occurrence, appearance, or statement.
His announcement was a surprise to all.
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an assault, as on an army or a fort, made without warning.
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a coming upon unexpectedly; detecting in the act; taking unawares.
idioms
verb
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to cause to feel amazement or wonder
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to encounter or discover unexpectedly or suddenly
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to capture or assault suddenly and without warning
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to present with something unexpected, such as a gift
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(foll by into) to provoke (someone) to unintended action by a trick, etc
to surprise a person into an indiscretion
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(often foll by from) to elicit by unexpected behaviour or by a trick
to surprise information from a prisoner
noun
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the act or an instance of surprising; the act of taking unawares
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a sudden or unexpected event, gift, etc
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the feeling or condition of being surprised; astonishment
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(modifier) causing, characterized by, or relying upon surprise
a surprise move
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to come upon suddenly and without warning
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to capture unexpectedly or catch unprepared
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to astonish; amaze
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Usage
Spelling tips for surprise The word surprise is hard to spell for two reasons. First, many people forget to include the first r because it is not emphasized. Second, surprise sounds like it might end in -ize, but it actually ends in -ise. How to spell surprise: Surprise! There’s an r in the first syllable (even if it often doesn’t sound like there is). You can remember this by picturing the p being surprised that it’s surrounded by an r on both sides. Next, remember that surprise ends in rise, not prize.
Synonym Usage
Surprise, astonish, amaze, astound mean to strike with wonder because of unexpectedness, strangeness, unusualness, etc. To surprise is to take unawares or to affect with wonder: surprised at receiving a telegram. To astonish is to strike with wonder by something unlooked for, startling, or seemingly inexplicable: astonished at someone's behavior. To amaze is to astonish so greatly as to disconcert or bewilder: amazed at such an evidence of stupidity. To astound is to so overwhelm with surprise that one is unable to think or act: astounded by the news.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
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supersurprisenoun
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surprisalnoun
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surprisernoun
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surprisedadjective
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unsurprisedadjective
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surprisedlyadverb
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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surprisesimple
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surprisessimple
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have surprisedperfect
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has surprisedperfect
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am surprisingprogressive
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are surprisingprogressive
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is surprisingprogressive
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have been surprisingperfect progressive
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has been surprisingperfect progressive
Past
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surprisedsimple
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had surprisedperfect
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was surprisingprogressive
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were surprisingprogressive
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had been surprisingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of surprise
First recorded in 1425–75; (noun) late Middle English, from Anglo-French surpris(e), Middle French, past participle of surprendre, equivalent to sur- sur- 1 + pris (masculine), prise (feminine), from Latin prēnsus, -sa, equivalent to prēndere, contracted variant of prehendere “to take” ( see prehension) + -tus, -ta past participle suffix; (verb) late Middle English surprisen, from Anglo-French surpris(e) (past participle), Middle French, as above
Explanation
A surprise can be an unexpected or astonishing event, such as an ambush or a really great grade on a test you didn't study for. Surprise can be a verb meaning to astonish or startle someone, a noun for the unexpected thing, or for the feeling produced by that surprise. It comes from the Latin word for "seize," and originally meant an unexpected military attack. When the novelist Charles Lever wrote in 1841 of "three cavalry regiments, their noiseless gestures and perfect stillness bespeaking at once that they were intended for a surprise party," he meant a surprise attack, not a birthday party.
Vocabulary lists containing surprise
Emotions on Display
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Commonly Misspelled Words, List 6
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"Alice's Adventures in Wonderland" by Lewis Carroll, Chapters 1–3
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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:
Gen Z and millennial home buyers in particular were shocked by how stressful owning a house is; 69% of millennial homeowners said they needed to make surprise repairs on their home.
From MarketWatch ● Aug. 15, 2026
All that was thrown at him as a sophomore, so it was no surprise he had some offside penalties.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 15, 2026
One surprise here is that no new bit of punctuation has gained a purchase in English-language writing since about 1600.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 14, 2026
Its director, Geert Hillaert, said his first reaction was "surprise and amazement", adding that he hoped the loot might eventually be used to support the charity's work and meet the "enormous need we experience daily".
From BBC ● Aug. 14, 2026
I cannot begin to imagine what this man wants from me, but apparently my job is saved by his surprise appearance in my workspace.
From "The Brightwood Code" by Monica Hesse
Many experienced homeowners will know there’s a steep learning curve that can include financial surprises.
From MarketWatch ● Aug. 15, 2026
The war has already been marked by surprises.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 8, 2026
The BBC said Marler will make his debut with a series of "special appearances packed with power, personality and plenty of surprises".
From BBC ● Aug. 5, 2026
In the past year, six members of Congress have died in office, and while a couple were surprises, most of them had health issues they minimized or ignored until it was too late.
From Salon ● Aug. 3, 2026
“Thank you,” I reply, and the smile that comes to my lips surprises me.
From "A Place at the Table" by Saadia Faruqi and Laura Shovan
Donovan, who has lived in Clacton her entire life, added she was pleasantly surprised by how many people voted for Binface.
From BBC ● Aug. 15, 2026
New homeowners might be surprised to find that their first year’s property-tax bill was a lot smaller than the second year’s.
From MarketWatch ● Aug. 15, 2026
Roland added that she was not surprised to hear complaints of poor living conditions from sailors on board, given that their few days of reprieve for port call constantly were being delayed.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 14, 2026
Plenty of the taste-testers who went viral seemed surprised to find they actually liked the flavor explosion.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 14, 2026
Am I surprised that my phone is treated like trash by Dad?
From "Red Flags and Butterflies" by Sheryl Azzam
The more surprising story isn’t what’s happening in the world’s most important crude chokepoint — it’s why the oil market no longer seems to care as much as it did just a few months ago.
From MarketWatch ● Aug. 16, 2026
Researchers say the finding points to a surprising mechanism and challenges the prevailing idea that chronic viral reactivation occurs mainly because of immunosuppression.
From Science Daily ● Aug. 16, 2026
Its success is perhaps even more surprising given its subject matter - UK politics.
From BBC ● Aug. 15, 2026
Recently struggling Starbucks raised guidance after surprising investors with faster comparable sales growth and the first improvement in its North American operating margin in more than two years.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 14, 2026
Then he led the bouncing dog to the kitchen, which, as usual, was occupied by a surprising number of cats.
From "Jeremy Thatcher, Dragon Hatcher" by Bruce Coville
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.
