wonder

American  

[wuhn-der] / ˈwʌn dər /

verb (used without object)

1. to think or speculate curiously.

   to wonder about the origin of the solar system.

   Synonyms:

   question, ponder, meditate, conjecture

2. to be filled with admiration, amazement, or awe; marvel (often followed byat ).

   He wondered at her composure in such a crisis.

3. to doubt.

   I wonder if she'll really get here.

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verb (used with object)

1. to speculate curiously or be curious about; be curious to know.

   to wonder what happened.

2. to feel wonder at.

   I wonder that you went.

   Synonyms:

   marvel

noun

1. 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.

2. 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.

   Synonyms:

   awe, bewilderment, amazement, astonishment, surprise

3. miraculous deed or event; remarkable phenomenon.

idioms

1. for a wonder, as the reverse of what might be expected; surprisingly.

   For a wonder, they worked hard all day.

wonder ¹ British  

/ ˈwʌndə /

noun

1. the feeling excited by something strange; a mixture of surprise, curiosity, and sometimes awe

2. something that causes such a feeling, such as a miracle

3. See Seven Wonders of the World

4. (modifier) exciting wonder by virtue of spectacular results achieved, feats performed, etc

   a wonder drug

   a wonder horse

5. to achieve spectacularly fine results

6. surprisingly or amazingly

7. a subject that arouses general surprise or public interest for a short time

8. (sentence connector) (I am) not surprised at all (that)

   no wonder he couldn't come

9. (sentence connector) (I am) hardly surprised (that)

   small wonder he couldn't make it tonight

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verb

1. to indulge in speculative inquiry, often accompanied by an element of doubt (concerning something)

   I wondered about what she said

   I wonder what happened

2. to be amazed (at something)

   I wonder at your impudence

Wonder ² British  

/ ˈwʌndə /

noun

1. Stevie. real name Steveland Judkins Morris. born 1950, US Motown singer, songwriter, and multi-instrumentalist. His recordings include Up-Tight (1966), "Superstition" (1972), Innervisions (1973), Songs in the Key of Life (1976), and "I Just Called to Say I Love You" (1985)

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wonder More Idioms  

More idioms and phrases containing wonder

• for a wonder
• no wonder
• work wonders

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Other Word Forms

• wonderer noun
• wonderless adjective

Etymology

Origin of wonder

First recorded before 900; (noun) Middle English; Old English wundor; cognate with Dutch wonder, German Wunder, Old Norse undr; (verb) Middle English wonderen, Old English wundrian, derivative of the noun

Example Sentences

“Yeah. Dread in the morning. Anxiety and depression throughout the day. Sometimes I wonder if even worse when my parents try to help me — ”

From Salon

When a manager does that, I start to wonder how long he will hang around.

From BBC

She is still haunted, she said, by the instant before she left when she saw her own terror reflected in her neighbor’s eyes, and wondered if they would ever see each other again.

From The Wall Street Journal

He looks an absolute steal and you start to wonder how Sunderland sold him on the venture.

From BBC

Some of his stocks have doubled or more since the spring, although the 27-year-old wonders how much longer the market rally can last.

From The Wall Street Journal

Related Words

• admiration
• astonishment
• awe
• bewilderment
• confusion
• curiosity
• doubt
• fascination
• fear
• reverence
• shock
• skepticism
• surprise
• uncertainty