marvelous

adjective

mar·​vel·​ous ˈmärv-(ə-)ləs How to pronounce marvelous (audio)
variants or chiefly British marvellous
1
: causing wonder : astonishing
the marvelous directional sense of migrating birds
2
: miraculous, supernatural
Gothic tales of marvelous and bizarre happenings
3
: of the highest kind or quality : notably superior
has a marvelous way with children
marvelously adverb
or chiefly British marvellously
marvelously inventive
sang marvelously
marvelousness noun
or chiefly British marvellousness

Examples of marvelous in a Sentence

We had a marvelous time at the party. He has a marvelous way with children. The weather was simply marvelous.
Recent Examples on the Web But in a strange, sad way, there’s something marvelous about that really. Patrick Ryan, USA TODAY, 11 Mar. 2024 For a company to unveil a decent new ballet is a strange and marvelous occurrence. Gia Kourlas, New York Times, 8 Mar. 2024 Rediscovering the joy of dance at the age of 50 feels simply marvelous. Billboard China, Billboard, 6 Mar. 2024 The monkey tail is one of nature’s most marvelous tree-top tools. Sam Walters, Discover Magazine, 4 Mar. 2024 Marvel was, well, marvelous during a 26-2 run between the first and second quarters that saw the Jaguars take control. Matt Schubert, The Denver Post, 2 Mar. 2024 Trying to Kill Each Other' And Walken is marvelous — querulous, petty, cruel — as the Emperor. Tom Gliatto, Peoplemag, 29 Feb. 2024 The Pendulum Swings is Priddy’s marvelous new album and the TW4s brought out the full nuance in her elfin voice as well as her exquisite guitar playing. Mark Sparrow, Forbes, 25 Feb. 2024 So the obvious thing to say about any connection between his work (two marvelous examples of which have been included in the show) and Indian court art is that both are richly — and often surprisingly — colored. Sebastian Smee, Washington Post, 23 Feb. 2024

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'marvelous.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

Etymology

Middle English merveillous, borrowed from Anglo-French, from merveille marvel entry 1 + -ous -ous

First Known Use

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of marvelous was in the 14th century

Dictionary Entries Near marvelous

Cite this Entry

“Marvelous.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/marvelous. Accessed 19 Mar. 2024.

Kids Definition

marvelous

adjective
mar·​vel·​ous
variants or marvellous
1
: causing wonder or astonishment
2
: having the characteristics of a miracle
3
: of the highest kind or quality : splendid
we had a marvelous time
marvelously adverb
marvelousness noun

More from Merriam-Webster on marvelous

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