surprising
Americanadjective
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of surprising
Explanation
Surprising things are completely unexpected—they astonish or startle you. It would be surprising for most of us to get a phone call from the Queen of England. Unless you suspected your friend was planning something, the surprise party she throws for your birthday will be surprising. Things that are surprising take you aback or even confuse you a little bit. The adjective surprising comes from surprise, via the Old French sorprendre, "to overtake or seize." The original meaning of surprise party was a stealth military action.
Vocabulary lists containing surprising
Amazing
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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.
But they did have one potentially innovative and surprising, if disconcerting, solution to our national public health information crisis: A.I. has the potential to help stave off a conspiratorial catastrophe during the next pandemic.
From Slate ● Aug. 26, 2026
Retired outfielder Sam Fuld was the Philadelphia Phillies’ general manager when he received a surprising offer: get an M.B.A. and come back as the club’s president of business operations.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 26, 2026
What is most surprising, however, is not the cancer results or the biological markers of ageing.
From Science Daily ● Aug. 26, 2026
Bauer, an assistant journalism and creative media professor at the University of Alabama, said it’s not surprising to him that many of Owens’s current listeners identify as apolitical.
From Salon ● Aug. 26, 2026
She still looked unconvinced, which, considering my peace offering was a lackluster salad with soggy croutons, was not all that surprising.
From "Glitch" by Laura Martin
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.
