surprised 1 of 2

adjective

variants also surprized
Definition of surprisednext
as in startled

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surprised

2 of 2

verb

variants also surprized
past tense of surprise
1
as in amazed
to make a strong impression on (someone) with something unexpected I was very surprised when my parents offered to pay the down payment on our house

Synonyms & Similar Words
2
as in ambushed
to lie in wait for and attack by surprise FBI agents surprised the counterfeiters in their own base of operations

Synonyms & Similar Words

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of surprised
Adjective
If this is a social commitment, someone dropping out could bring a new individual into the mix, leaving you pleasantly surprised with the outcome. — Valerie Mesa, PEOPLE, 20 Aug. 2026 So Geuder was not surprised when Shaffer was elected one of three team captains by his peers. — Steve Reaven, Chicago Tribune, 19 Aug. 2026
Verb
Elsewhere in Italy, Como — which surprised with a fourth-place finish last season — was held to a 1-1 draw at Udinese. — ABC News, 22 Aug. 2026 Was there any particular friendship that had drama and surprised you? — Lexi Carson, HollywoodReporter, 21 Aug. 2026 See All Example Sentences for surprised
Recent Examples of Synonyms for surprised
  1. startled
  2. amazed
  3. ambushed
  4. awed
  5. shocked
  6. attacked
  7. bewildered
  8. stunned
Adjective
  • Her face, indisputably middle-aged, had a pensive, startled quality.
    — Madhuri Vijay, New Yorker, 16 Aug. 2026
  • Even general manager Jonah Kaplan is a little startled by the café’s increasing popularity.
    — Miami Herald, Miami Herald, 6 Aug. 2026
Definition of startled
Verb
  • Just before halftime, van Persie slipped past the Spanish defensive line to receive a long-range pass from teammate Daley Blind and looped the ball over Spanish goalkeeper Iker Casillas with a first-time diving header that amazed the audience.
    — Tushaar Kuthiala, Encyclopedia Britannica, 15 July 2026
  • When Alexander Graham Bell demonstrated the telephone at America’s Centennial Exposition in Philadelphia in 1876, the invention amazed the crowd.
    — David H. Hsu, Fortune, 11 May 2026
Definition of amazed
Verb
  • As Cole is driving Tibu back from a passing-of-the-torch party, the two are ambushed, and Tibu is killed.
    — Owen Gleiberman, Variety, 19 Aug. 2026
  • While there was a period of harmony between the two coasts, that imploded after Shakur was ambushed at a Times Square recording studio in November 1994.
    — Cheyenne Roundtree, Rolling Stone, 9 Aug. 2026
Definition of ambushed
Adjective
  • Maxwell, a fiction editor at The New Yorker, drew upon his own awed discovery of France in 1948; the novel’s opening paragraphs show one of the protagonists weeping at the sight of the French shore.
    — Cynthia Zarin, Harpers Magazine, 28 July 2026
  • But credit Neill for both understanding the assignment and not quite settling for those awed stares of Spielbergian wonder.
    — Glenn Whipp, Los Angeles Times, 13 July 2026
Definition of awed
Verb
  • The Panthers shocked the Seminoles with one of their most damaging losses last season at Doak.
    — Andre C. Fernandez, Miami Herald, 19 Aug. 2026
  • The bombing of churchgoers in their own house of worship shocked the world.
    — Jason Wollschleger, The Conversation, 19 Aug. 2026
Definition of shocked
Verb
  • Evidence publicly presented in the Clancy case indicates Lindsay was the only adult at the family home when investigators believe the children were attacked.
    — Rebekah Riess, CNN Money, 22 Aug. 2026
  • The Defense Ministry in Bucharest said that so far this year, Russia had attacked targets close to Romania's frontier 54 times, representing a significant increase on the 28 attacks close to the border in all of 2025.
    — David Brennan, ABC News, 21 Aug. 2026
Definition of attacked
Adjective
  • On Douban, a popular Chinese movie-review platform, viewers piled on with mocking and bewildered comments.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 17 Aug. 2026
  • That's when Penix, who was standing nearby, pointed at him and made a bewildered face.
    — Matt Reigle OutKick, FOXNews.com, 16 Aug. 2026
Definition of bewildered
Verb
  • New Zealand stunned South Africa 33-16 at Ellis Park on Saturday and drew first blood in their historic four-test series.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 22 Aug. 2026
  • Kandi was still stunned that the man who caught her son’s first home run, the man captured in her video, was her husband.
    — Devon Henderson, New York Times, 21 Aug. 2026
Definition of stunned

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Cite this Entry

“Surprised.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/surprised. Accessed 25 Aug. 2026.

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