astonished

American

[uh-ston-isht] / əˈstɒn ɪʃt /

adjective

filled with sudden and overpowering surprise or wonder; amazed.

Before the eyes of the astonished crowd, the magician pulled off everything from simple card tricks to the disappearance of his lovely assistant.

verb

the simple past tense and past participle of astonish.

Other Word Forms

astonishedly adverb
unastonished adjective

Etymology

Origin of astonished

First recorded in 1510–20, for an earlier sense; astonish + -ed ² ( def. ) for the adjective sense; astonish + -ed ¹ ( def. ) for the verb sense

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.

Americans are likely be astonished at how grievances from centuries ago seem like fresh insults.

From The Wall Street Journal • Feb. 22, 2026

“Around this ‘ticker’ gathered and grouped a knot of eager, nervous, and anxious men,” wrote an astonished observer in 1880.

From Barron's • Jan. 13, 2026

Overlooking David’s many strapping older brothers, the wise elder anoints the astonished kid as the next king, but cautions him that the ceremony must be kept secret.

From The Wall Street Journal • Dec. 18, 2025

Prior to this move, fans' group Football Supporters Europe had said it is "astonished" by Fifa's "extortionate" pricing strategy, and called for ticket sales to be "halted immediately".

From BBC • Dec. 16, 2025

So it must have simply astonished the dons of Oxford to hear this peculiar Italian, as he dipped and dodged, chucked and chirred, defending Copernicanism as the literal truth.

From "The Invention of Science" by David Wootton

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023