astonished

American

[uh-ston-isht] / əˈstɒn ɪʃt /

adjective

filled with sudden and overpowering surprise or wonder; amazed.

Before the eyes of the astonished crowd, the magician pulled off everything from simple card tricks to the disappearance of his lovely assistant.

verb

the simple past tense and past participle of astonish.

Other Word Forms

astonishedly adverb
unastonished adjective

Etymology

Origin of astonished

First recorded in 1510–20, for an earlier sense; astonish + -ed ² ( def. ) for the adjective sense; astonish + -ed ¹ ( def. ) for the verb sense

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

They were also astonished to discover a massive, vertical sinkhole called a blue hole, 75km south of a bank called Grand Turk, that formed when a cave collapsed inwards.

From BBC • Mar. 7, 2026

Meloni said she was astonished by his words, adding, “Friendship requires respect.”

From The Wall Street Journal • Feb. 17, 2026

"It goes without saying that I'm very happy, and very proud, but at the same time astonished."

From Barron's • Feb. 6, 2026

Overlooking David’s many strapping older brothers, the wise elder anoints the astonished kid as the next king, but cautions him that the ceremony must be kept secret.

From The Wall Street Journal • Dec. 18, 2025

Since Mr. Popper knew that penguins lay only two eggs a season, he was astonished when, a little later, the third egg was found under Greta.

From "Mr. Popper's Penguins" by Florence Atwater and Richard Atwater

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023