astonishing

adjective

as·​ton·​ish·​ing ə-ˈstä-ni-shiŋ How to pronounce astonishing (audio)
: causing a feeling of great surprise or wonder : surprising
an astonishing discovery
astonishingly adverb

Examples of astonishing in a Sentence

He showed an astonishing lack of concern for others. The truck can hold an astonishing amount of stuff. She gave an astonishing performance in her first film.
Recent Examples on the Web Reading the novel or revisiting Hitchcock is a far better bet than witnessing this sorry, truly astonishing attempt at re-invention. David Benedict, Variety, 19 Sep. 2023 With its astonishing view of the Brooklyn Bridge, the apartment looks like a real-estate ad. Jennifer Egan, The New Yorker, 11 Sep. 2023 But no genuine originalist would make an astonishing, ridiculous, and utterly ahistorical assertion like the one in the Journal interview. Norman J. Ornstein, The New Republic, 11 Sep. 2023 The culture that phenomenon creates is astonishing. Jenny Comita, New York Times, 8 Sep. 2023 The astonishing results change the view of Jewish resistance during World War II dramatically. Wolf Gruner, The Conversation, 29 Aug. 2023 More than a century later, Stephen Daldry joined forces with Vogue to bring the pages of the magazine to life and curate an evening every bit as astonishing as that inaugural issue. Hayley Maitland, Vogue, 14 Sep. 2023 For all the long points—an astonishing fifty-four of them were nine shots or more—the majority of points, as in most professional matches, were short, four shots or fewer. Louisa Thomas, The New Yorker, 11 Sep. 2023 Pichai’s letter, released on September 5, was buoyant, designed to inspire, and almost giddy in its discussion of the company’s astonishing journey. Steven Levy, WIRED, 11 Sep. 2023 See More

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'astonishing.' 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

from present participle of astonish

First Known Use

1593, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of astonishing was in 1593

Dictionary Entries Near astonishing

Cite this Entry

“Astonishing.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/astonishing. Accessed 4 Oct. 2023.

More from Merriam-Webster on astonishing

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!