astound

[ uh-stound ]

verb (used with object)

1. to overwhelm with amazement; astonish greatly; shock with wonder or surprise.

adjective

1. Archaic. astonished; astounded.

astound

/ əˈstaʊnd /

verb

1. tr to overwhelm with amazement and wonder; bewilder

Other Words From

• as·toundment noun

Word History and Origins

Origin of astound¹

First recorded in 1275–1325; Middle English astoun(e)d, past participle of astonen, variant of astonyen “to thunder.” See astonish

Word History and Origins

Origin of astound¹

C17: from astoned amazed, from Old French estoné, from estoner to astonish

Synonym Study

See surprise.

Example Sentences

A Banksy work does not astound with technique or formal innovation, nor is it meant to.

From New York Times

That would be the goal, of course, but the best viral content bubbles up unpolished from the ether, slightly awkward and just novel enough to astound.

From New York Times

Haaland's scoring exploits continue to astound.

From BBC

“But you will amaze and astound your audience,” says Emily.

From Literature

And many of these events occurred relatively recently, showing that the field of physics continues to astound us.

From Scientific American

Related Words

• astonish
• bewilder
• confound
• confuse
• dumbfound
• flabbergast
• overwhelm
• shock
• stagger
• startle
• stun
• stupefy
• surprise