wonder
verb (used without object)
to think or speculate curiously.
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Trivia Time
What Wonder of the Ancient World was granted honorary status on the New Seven Wonders list?
wonder
American
[wuhn-der]
/ ˈwʌn dər /
verb (used without object)
-
wonders,
present (3rd person singular)
-
wondered,
past participle, past
-
wondering
present participle
-
to think or speculate curiously.
to wonder about the origin of the solar system.
- Synonyms:
- question, ponder, meditate, conjecture
-
to be filled with admiration, amazement, or awe; marvel (often followed byat ).
He wondered at her composure in such a crisis.
-
to doubt.
I wonder if she'll really get here.
verb (used with object)
-
wonders,
present (3rd person singular)
-
wondered,
past participle, past
-
wondering
present participle
-
to speculate curiously or be curious about; be curious to know.
to wonder what happened.
-
to feel wonder at.
I wonder that you went.
- Synonyms:
- marvel
noun
-
wonders
plural
-
something strange and surprising; a cause of surprise, astonishment, or admiration.
That building is a wonder. It is a wonder he declined such an offer.
-
the emotion excited by what is strange and surprising; a feeling of surprised or puzzled interest, sometimes tinged with admiration.
He felt wonder at seeing the Grand Canyon.
- Synonyms:
- awe, bewilderment, amazement, astonishment, surprise
-
miraculous deed or event; remarkable phenomenon.
idioms
wonder
1
British
/ ˈwʌndə /
noun
-
the feeling excited by something strange; a mixture of surprise, curiosity, and sometimes awe
-
something that causes such a feeling, such as a miracle
-
(modifier) exciting wonder by virtue of spectacular results achieved, feats performed, etc
a wonder drug
a wonder horse
-
to achieve spectacularly fine results
-
surprisingly or amazingly
-
a subject that arouses general surprise or public interest for a short time
-
(sentence connector) (I am) not surprised at all (that)
no wonder he couldn't come
-
(sentence connector) (I am) hardly surprised (that)
small wonder he couldn't make it tonight
verb
-
to indulge in speculative inquiry, often accompanied by an element of doubt (concerning something)
I wondered about what she said
I wonder what happened
-
to be amazed (at something)
I wonder at your impudence
Wonder
2
British
/ ˈwʌndə /
noun
wonder
More Idioms
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
-
wondersimple
-
wonderssimple
-
have wonderedperfect
-
has wonderedperfect
-
am wonderingprogressive
-
are wonderingprogressive
-
is wonderingprogressive
-
have been wonderingperfect progressive
-
has been wonderingperfect progressive
Past
-
wonderedsimple
-
had wonderedperfect
-
was wonderingprogressive
-
were wonderingprogressive
-
had been wonderingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of wonder
First recorded before 900; (noun) Middle English; Old English wundor; cognate with Dutch wonder, German Wunder, Old Norse undr; (verb) Middle English wonderen, Old English wundrian, derivative of the noun
Explanation
When you wonder about something, you want to learn more about it. You wonder why the car is making that noise so you ask the mechanic to explain it. Wonder comes from the Old English word wundor, which means "marvelous thing, the object of astonishment." For example, the Taj Mahal is one of the great wonders of the world, so beautiful and magical. But wonders are all around us — anything that amazes and marvels is a wonder, like high-definition television, the Internet, your mom's homemade pizza — though we tend to forget this because we are used to them.
Vocabulary lists containing wonder
Michelle Obama's Speech at the 2016 DNC
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"The Tragedy of Macbeth," Vocabulary from Act 1
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"LAFFF"
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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.
See Examples For:
There are so many scary diseases out there that I had to wonder: Is there something about plague that is particularly unsettling?
From Slate ● Oct. 8, 2026
I’m starting to wonder whether being financially secure means anything if I’m constantly afraid to use my own money.
From MarketWatch ● Oct. 8, 2026
Hinton puts focus on the psychological impact — detailing how the Greasers spruce themselves up and how the lead character, 14-year-old Ponyboy, begins to wonder what he’s fighting for.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 6, 2026
AI agents going rogue and ever-louder doomsday warnings have led many in Europe to wonder: are the EU's artificial intelligence rules enough to protect against the potential dangers?
From Barron's ● Oct. 6, 2026
And I didn’t have time to wonder how Charlie did.
From "The Teacher’s Funeral" by Richard Peck
Wonder what Ken Paxton thinks privately about anything?
From Slate ● Oct. 10, 2026
She traveled the world and shared the stage with legendary artists, including Stevie Wonder and Chaka Khan.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 29, 2026
Stevie Wonder says “September” and its “ba-dee-yas” resonate with every kind of audience because they’re jubilant in a way that transcends language and cultural barriers.
From Salon ● Sep. 13, 2026
After struggling as a public company, Blue Apron was purchased by food-delivery startup Wonder in 2023 for around $103 million, far below its IPO value of $1.9 billion in 2017.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 19, 2026
“I guess it doesn’t matter about the seventh Wonder, because I can’t make good on my promise.”
From "The Seven Wonders of Sassafras Springs" by Betty G. Birney
He now wonders whether AI could transform the profession before he even graduates.
From BBC ● Oct. 5, 2026
Ms. Perry, a novelist, wonders if her fear was unfounded.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 2, 2026
Ram wonders if he will ever get any answers.
From Barron's ● Oct. 2, 2026
Its sealed perimeter, only accessible via lines and screening, now makes one of the world’s wonders feel less like a wondrous part of the city than an attraction held behind glass.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 1, 2026
He came forth, and going to Pentheus again he tried to persuade him to yield to what these wonders plainly showed was divine, and welcome this new worship of a new and great god.
From "Mythology: Timeless Tales of Gods and Heroes" by Edith Hamilton
Chemists have long wondered how that process occurs, and the two Nobel laureates' discoveries have "enabled chemists to drive chemical reactions that lead to homochirality", the jury said.
From Barron's ● Oct. 7, 2026
However, we wondered if an idea originally proposed to solve another cosmic mystery — the origin of cosmic magnetic fields — could help us unlock the mystery of the Hubble tension.
From Science Daily ● Oct. 4, 2026
That title lifted the postseason burden off Kershaw, and I wondered whether Skubal might feel the same way if he leads these Dodgers to a parade.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 1, 2026
"Even after just three hours of dancing at the location myself, I wondered how he would keep going."
From BBC ● Sep. 28, 2026
For an instant I wondered if she would be as pretty as Courtney.
From "Firegirl" by Tony Abbott
And once again, the most successful team in American sports history was left wondering what went so wrong.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 8, 2026
Lately, I’ve been wondering if the basket of free chips and salsa — dropped almost ceremonially onto the table before anyone has ordered a thing — might eventually join them.
From Salon ● Oct. 7, 2026
Every member of the cast and crew joining the show knew audiences would be wondering one thing: How would they pull off the great rumble, where two factions face off?
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 6, 2026
But, having met Vera and Robert, I can't help wondering: if she could choose, would Vera prefer to speak to a robot or a relative?
From BBC ● Oct. 1, 2026
I am wondering whether endings exist at all, or whether life is merely a series of pauses, breaths we take in before we move on, things we lose and things we carry.
From "The Brightwood Code" by Monica Hesse
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.
