marvelous

American

[mahr-vuh-luhs] / ˈmɑr və ləs /

especially British, marvellous

adjective

superb; excellent; great.

a marvelous show.

Synonyms:

wonderful

Antonyms:

terrible
such as to cause wonder, admiration, or astonishment; surprising; extraordinary.

Synonyms:

miraculous, amazing, wondrous

Antonyms:

commonplace
improbable or incredible.

the marvelous events of Greek myth.

Synonyms:

unbelievable

Usage

What does marvelous mean? Marvelous means wonderful, extraordinary, fabulous, superb, excellent. In this sense, it is often used to praise things like works of art and artistic performances. Marvelous is the adjective form of the noun marvel, which most commonly means a thing that causes wonder. Marvelous can mean causing wonder, as well as improbable, but both of these senses are much less common than its primary meaning of “wonderful.”In British English, it is commonly spelled marvellous. Example: That was absolutely marvelous! What a wonderful show! Bravo!

Other Word Forms

marvellousness noun
marvelously adverb
supermarvelous adjective
supermarvelously adverb
supermarvelousness noun
unmarvellous adjective
unmarvellously adverb
unmarvellousness noun
unmarvelous adjective
unmarvelously adverb
unmarvelousness noun

Etymology

Origin of marvelous

First recorded in 1300–50; Middle English merve(il)lous, from Middle French merveilleus; equivalent to marvel + -ous

Explanation

Something marvelous is unusual, wonderful, and almost miraculous. Finding a bag of gold would be marvelous by any standard. Something that's decent or even simply good isn't marvelous. A marvelous thing needs to be really stunning, exceptional, or hard to believe. Marvelous things make people marvel at them — they're amazing and a little shocking, like a miracle. Winning the lottery would be marvelous. Finding out that ice cream is actually good for you would be marvelous. And if you want to make someone feel extra nice, tell them their new hat looks marvelous.

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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.

That “Project Hail Mary” venerates the art of filmmaking is just one of its many marvelous aspects, but one that should not be overlooked.

From Salon • Mar. 21, 2026

The king has moved swiftly to protect it, displaying what James Knox, who has worked closely with Charles, once described to me as “steely determination cloaked in marvelous manners.”

From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 5, 2026

How marvelous that Duvall made his screen debut as Boo Radley in the 1962 classic “To Kill a Mockingbird.”

From Los Angeles Times • Feb. 17, 2026

Mr. Lendorf stood out for his unerring, dignified demeanor and the clarity of his pliant upper-body carriage against the marvelous surety of his cats-paw footwork and quietly powerful legwork.

From The Wall Street Journal • Jan. 20, 2026

Both Call and the Captain seemed to regard me as mentally deficient, since I couldn’t appreciate their marvelous humor.

From "Jacob Have I Loved" by Katherine Paterson

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