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.
The Oklahoma City Thunder and San Antonio Spurs have produced four games of astonishing runs, scintillating comebacks, and extraterrestrial alley-oops.
From The Wall Street Journal • May 25, 2026
The particle carried an astonishing energy of around 220 PeV, more than ten times greater than previously detected high energy neutrinos, and researchers still do not know exactly where it came from.
From Science Daily • May 24, 2026
Watch Celtic lift the Scottish Premiership trophy for the fifth season in a row, denying Hearts on an astonishing final day.
From BBC • May 16, 2026
He erased that X with his camera and his astonishing heart.”
From Los Angeles Times • May 16, 2026
Without missing a beat in his Senate duties, he’d have to build and maintain a coast-to-coast campaign operation, develop a policy platform, and also raise an astonishing amount of money.
From "Becoming" by Michelle Obama
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.
