wonder
//ˈwʌndə//
Forms
- Plural
- wonders
- present (v1)
- wonder
- past (v2)
- wondered
- past participle (v3)
- wondered
- present participle
- wondering
- 3rd person singular
- wonders
Definitions
1.A sense of awe, astonishment and curiosity, inspired by unexpected events, novel experiences and inexplicable circumstances, sometimes accompanied by surprise, shock or reverence.
- All wonder is the effect of novelty upon ignorance.
- Stuff your eyes with wonder […]live as if you'd drop dead in ten seconds. See the world. It's more fantastic than any dream made or paid for in factories.
2.Something that causes amazement or awe; a marvel.
- So the voiceless wonder speaks at last.
- 'Where is the cheating dickless wonder?'
- That stay in the country did her wonders.
3.A mental pondering, a thought.(informal)
- Miss Paynter had a little wonder as to whether the man, as she called Mr. Lacy in her own mind, had ever been admitted to this room. She thought not.
4.A kind of donut; a cruller.
- I wonder why Tom didn't come to Mary's party.
- I wonder what Tom's motive for doing that was.
- I wonder where to hang this picture that Tom gave me.
1.To be affected with surprise or admiration; to be struck with astonishment; to be amazed; to marvel; often followed by at.
- He's married by now, I shouldn't wonder.
2.To ponder; to feel doubt and curiosity; to query in the mind.
- Has Jay gone fishing, I wonder?
- I was wondering what time the film was starting.
- He wondered whether penguins could fly. She had wondered this herself sometimes.
Frequency
Overall
Common· #737
By learning goal
- Everyday conversation
- Uncommon
- General reading & writing
- Common
- Academic
- Rare
- Literature
- Uncommon
Related words
Word family
Etymology
From Middle English wonder, wunder, from Old English wundor (“wonder, miracle, marvel”), from Proto-West Germanic *wundr, from Proto-Germanic *wundrą.