Etymology : Middle English, from Old English wundor; akin to Old High German wuntar wonder
Pronunciation : w&n-d&r
Function : noun
Date : before 12th century
1. marvel; miracle; amazement; astonishment; ponder. marvel; be astonished; be amazed; ponder; cast doubt. wonder\won"der\ , n. [oe. wonder, wunder, as. wundor; akin to d. wonder, os. wundar, ohg. wuntar, g. wunder, icel. undr, sw. & dan. under, and perhaps to gr. to gaze at.].
2. that emotion which is excited by novelty, or the presentation to the sight or mind of something new, unusual, strange, great, extraordinary, or not well understood; surprise; astonishment; admiration; amazement. they were filled with wonder and amazement at that which had happened unto him. ii.
3. wonder is the effect of novelty upon ignorance.note: wonder expresses less than astonishment, and much less than amazement. it differs from admiration, as now used, in not being necessarily accompanied with love, esteem, or approbation.
4. a cause of wonder; that which excites surprise; a strange thing; a prodigy; a miracle. " babylon, the wonder of all tongues." to try things oft, and never to give over, doth wonders. i am as a wonder unto many. lxxi. 7.
5. That emotion which is excited by novelty, or the presentation to the sight or mind of something new, unusual, strange, great, extraordinary, or not well understood; surprise; astonishment; admiration; amazement.
6. A cause of wonder; that which excites surprise; a strange thing; a prodigy; a miracle.
7. To be affected with surprise or admiration; to be struck with astonishment; to be amazed; to marvel.
8. To feel doubt and curiosity; to wait with uncertain expectation; to query in the mind; as, he wondered why they came.
9. Wonderful.
10. Wonderfully. something that causes feelings of wonder; "the wonders of modern science" the feeling aroused by something strange and surprising have a wish or desire to know something; "He wondered who had built this beautiful church" place in doubt or express doubtful speculation; "I wonder whether this was the right thing to do"; "she wondered whether it would snow tonight" be amazed at; "We marvelled at the child's linguistic abilities".
11. 1. If you wonder about something, you think about it, either because it interests you and you want to know more about it, or because you are worried or suspicious about it. I wondered what that noise was `He claims to be her father,' said Max. `We've been wondering about him.' But there was something else, too. Not hard evidence, but it made me wonder.
12. If you wonder at something, you are very surprised about it or think about it in a very surprised way. Walk down Castle Street, admire our little jewel of a cathedral, then wonder at the castle We all wonder you're still alive.
13. If you say that it is a wonder that something happened, you mean that it is very surprising and unexpected. It's a wonder that it took almost ten years The wonder is that Olivier was not seriously hurt.
14. Wonder is a feeling of great surprise and pleasure that you have, for example when you see:
something that is very beautiful, or when something happens that you thought was impossible. `That's right!' Bobby exclaimed in wonder. `How did you remember that?'.
15. A wonder is something that causes people to feel great surprise or admiration. a lecture on the wonders of space and space exploration. the wonder of seeing his name in print.
16. If you refer, for example, to a young man as a wonder boy, or to a new product as a wonder drug, you mean that they are believed by many people to be very good or very effective. Mickelson was hailed as the wonder boy of American golf.
17. politeness You can say `I wonder' if you want to be very polite when you are asking someone to do something, or when you are asking them for their opinion or for information. I was just wondering if you could help me.
18. If you say `no wonder', `little wonder', or `small wonder', you mean that something is not surprising. No wonder my brother wasn't feeling well Under such circumstances, it is little wonder that they experience difficulties.
19. You can say `No wonder' when you find out the reason for something that has been puzzling you for some time. Brad was Jane's brother! No wonder he reminded me so much of her!.
20. If you say that a person or thing works wonders or does wonders, you mean that they have a very good effect on something. A few moments of relaxation can work wonders.