bonanza

American  

[buh-nan-zuh, boh-] / bəˈnæn zə, boʊ- /

noun

bonanzas plural

1. a rich mass of ore, as found in mining.

2. a source of great and sudden wealth or luck; a spectacular windfall.

   The play proved to be a bonanza for its lucky backers.

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bonanza British  

/ bəˈnænzə /

noun

1. a source, usually sudden and unexpected, of luck or wealth

2. a mine or vein rich in ore

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Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• bonanzas
  plural

Etymology

Origin of bonanza

An Americanism first recorded in 1835–45; from Spanish: “calm sea, prosperity, abundance of minerals,” nasalized variant of Medieval Latin bonacia, alteration (with influence from Latin bonus “good,” possibly to avoid confusion with malus “bad”) of Latin malacia “calm sea,” from Greek malakía “softness” ( malak(ós) “soft” + -ia -ia )

Explanation

An unexpected increase in tourism to a small town could be a bonanza for the locals. Bonanza means "a sudden opportunity to make money." Bonanza is a noun that means "a sudden rush of wealth or good fortune," but in a more scientific sense it means "a rich source of a precious metal." So, if you happen to strike gold in your backyard, that would be a bonanza on both fronts. "Boom towns" that sprung up during the California Gold Rush were created by a bonanza. More casually, bonanza can mean something like "a big to-do," or an extravaganza.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

bonanza bonanzas

It is set to start gathering data in five years, and by failing to back Jodrell Bank, the UK risks missing out on this scientific bonanza, according to Prof Philip Diamond.

From BBC ● Jul. 28, 2026

European banks may not receive quite the same impetus from mega IPOs and the AI capex bonanza as their U.S. counterparts but this is reflected in the significantly lower valuations attached to them.

From MarketWatch ● Jul. 22, 2026

It has been a bonanza for options dealers who use stochastic calculus to spit out the right prices.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 10, 2026

As it happens, a number of the top-performing dividend funds are big beneficiaries of the AI bonanza that is driving excitement in the broader market too.

From Barron's ● Jun. 22, 2026

Langley, full of talented people with varied interests, was a bonanza of recruits for her many volunteer activities.

From "Hidden Figures" by Margot Lee Shetterly

Such offerings can be fee bonanzas for the teams of banks involved.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Feb. 11, 2026

The researchers suggest that these young eagles could be taking advantage of seasonal food bonanzas such as spawning salmon, nesting waterfowl, or carcasses of large mammals.

From Science Daily ● Dec. 11, 2025

It didn’t erase all that went sideways during the losses, or even prior victories that were goal-scoring bonanzas in which defensive play was abandoned.

From Seattle Times ● Dec. 21, 2022

But the last two years have brought financial bonanzas for ocean shipping companies, with the industry as a whole posting more than $150 billion in profits in 2021.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 5, 2022

Although the pilots tell us that this is a good time to sail in a southeast direction, they cannot deny that they endure very great hardships from the calms caused by the bonanzas.

From The Philippine Islands, 1493-1803 — Volume 04 of 55 1576-1582 Explorations by Early Navigators, Descriptions of the Islands and Their Peoples, Their History and Records of the Catholic Missions, as Related in Contemporaneous Books and Manuscripts, Showing the Political, Economic, Commercial and Religious Conditions of Those Islands from Their Earliest Relations with European Nations to the Beginning of the Nineteenth Century by Robertson, James Alexander

Related Words

• cash cow
• treasure trove