- present participle of surprise.
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
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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.
All of which is disturbing enough, if not surprising.
From Slate ● Aug. 20, 2026
The economy may soon start surprising to the downside: That’s because several forces have been putting downward pressure on growth.
From MarketWatch ● Aug. 19, 2026
How does she feel about the TV Academy’s surprising change?
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 19, 2026
I walked up and stepped right between them, truly surprising my friend.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 16, 2026
A dissonance may sound surprising, jarring, even unpleasant.
From "Understanding Basic Music Theory" by Catherine Schmidt-Jones and Russel Jones
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.
