marvelous
Americanadjective
-
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
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.
Good thing, too, since they see nothing but a marvelous, AI-assisted future.
From Salon • Mar. 26, 2026
Riz Ahmed has created and stars in a marvelous new series, “Bait,” premiering Wednesday on Prime Video.
From Los Angeles Times • Mar. 25, 2026
“I just think he’s a marvelous teacher,” Gayner said.
From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 15, 2026
The footage, which appears in Laura Poitras’ marvelous 2022 documentary “All the Beauty and the Bloodshed,” is a haunting vision of lethal corporate greed.
From Salon • Mar. 14, 2026
“But the movie’s getting the most marvelous reviews and the papers are full of the premiere,” I gushed.
From "The Red Car to Hollywood" by Jennie Liu
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.
