
Related to wonder: Wonder Bread, wonderland, Small Wonder


a. One that arouses awe, astonishment, surprise, or admiration; a marvel: Given all his unhealthy habits, it's a wonder he's lived this long. She was a wonder in that movie.
a. An extraordinary or remarkable act or achievement: That teacher has worked wonders with these students.
b. An event inexplicable by the laws of nature; a miracle.
v. won·dered, won·der·ing, won·ders
1. To have a feeling of awe, astonishment, surprise, or admiration: We wondered at the ease with which she settled into her new job.
2. To be filled with curiosity or doubt: I could only wonder after hearing his excuse. I wondered about his late-night comings and goings.
To feel curiosity or be in doubt about: I wondered what kind of costume she would wear. I wondered why I said that.
Remarkable or extraordinary, especially in being beneficial: considers quinoa a wonder grain.
do wonders
To have a beneficial effect: This tonic will do wonders for you.
for a wonder
As a cause for surprise; surprisingly.

[Middle English, from Old English wundor.]

won′der·er n.
Synonyms: wonder, marvel, miracle, phenomenon
These nouns denote one that evokes amazement or admiration: saw the wonders of Paris; a marvel of modern technology; a miracle of culinary art; a phenomenon of medical science.


1. the feeling excited by something strange; a mixture of surprise, curiosity, and sometimes awe
2. something that causes such a feeling, such as a miracle
3. (Historical Terms) See Seven Wonders of the World
4. (modifier) exciting wonder by virtue of spectacular results achieved, feats performed, etc: a wonder drug; a wonder horse.
5. do wonders work wonders to achieve spectacularly fine results
6. for a wonder surprisingly or amazingly
7. nine days' wonder a subject that arouses general surprise or public interest for a short time
8. no wonder (sentence connector) (I am) not surprised at all (that): no wonder he couldn't come.
9. small wonder (sentence connector) (I am) hardly surprised (that): small wonder he couldn't make it tonight.
vb (when tr, may take a clause as object)
10. (when: intr, often foll by about) to indulge in speculative inquiry, often accompanied by an element of doubt (concerning something): I wondered about what she said; I wonder what happened.
11. (when: intr, often foll by at) to be amazed (at something): I wonder at your impudence.
[Old English wundor; related to Old Saxon wundar, Old Norse undr, German Wunder]
ˈwonderer n
ˈwonderless adj


(Biography) Stevie. real name Steveland Judkins Morris. born 1950, US Motown singer, songwriter, and multi-instrumentalist. His recordings include Up-Tight (1966), "Superstition" (1972), Innervisions (1973), Songs in the Key of Life (1976), and "I Just Called to Say I Love You" (1985)


(ˈwʌn dər)

1. to think or speculate curiously and sometimes doubtfully: to wonder about the truth of a statement.
2. to be filled with awe; marvel (often fol. by at): We wondered at her skill and daring.
3. to speculate curiously; be curious to know: I wonder what happened.
4. to feel wonder at: We wondered that you went.
5. a cause of surprise, astonishment, or admiration: It is a wonder he declined such an offer.
6. a feeling of amazement, puzzled interest, or reverent admiration: a sense of wonder at seeing the Grand Canyon.
7. a remarkable or extraordinary phenomenon, deed, or event; marvel or miracle.
[before 900; (n.) Old English wundor, c. Old Saxon wundar, Old High German wuntar, Old Norse undr]
won′der•er, n.


(ˈwʌn dər)
Stevie (Stevland Morris), born 1950, U.S. pop singer and musician.


  • admire - Can mean "to wonder at, to be slightly surprised."
  • marvel - Traces to Latin mirabilia, from mirari, "wonder at."
  • nine days' wonder - An old term (c. 1325) for an event or phenomenon that attracts enthusiastic interest for a short while, but is then ignored or forgotten.
  • Wonder Bread - Got its name from a vice president who watched a hot-air balloon race shortly before the bread needed a name—"wonder" is how he described the event and then the bread.


1. basic use

The verb wonder is usually used to say that someone thinks about something and tries to guess or understand more about it.

I have been wondering about her strange behaviour.
2. used with wh-clauses

Wonder is often used with wh-clauses.

I wonder what she looks like.
I wonder which hotel it was.
3. used with 'if' and 'whether'

Wonder is also used with if or whether. If you wonder if something is true, you ask yourself whether it is true.

He wondered if she remembered him.
He was beginning to wonder whether it had really happened.

Be Careful!
Don't use a that-clause in sentences like these. Don't say, for example, 'He wondered that she remembered him'.

Wonder is sometimes used with if to make an invitation.


Past participle: wondered
Gerund: wondering

I wonder
you wonder
he/she/it wonders
we wonder
you wonder
they wonder
I wondered
you wondered
he/she/it wondered
we wondered
you wondered
they wondered
Present Continuous
I am wondering
you are wondering
he/she/it is wondering
we are wondering
you are wondering
they are wondering
Present Perfect
I have wondered
you have wondered
he/she/it has wondered
we have wondered
you have wondered
they have wondered
Past Continuous
I was wondering
you were wondering
he/she/it was wondering
we were wondering
you were wondering
they were wondering
Past Perfect
I had wondered
you had wondered
he/she/it had wondered
we had wondered
you had wondered
they had wondered
I will wonder
you will wonder
he/she/it will wonder
we will wonder
you will wonder
they will wonder
Future Perfect
I will have wondered
you will have wondered
he/she/it will have wondered
we will have wondered
you will have wondered
they will have wondered
Future Continuous
I will be wondering
you will be wondering
he/she/it will be wondering
we will be wondering
you will be wondering
they will be wondering
Present Perfect Continuous
I have been wondering
you have been wondering
he/she/it has been wondering
we have been wondering
you have been wondering
they have been wondering
Future Perfect Continuous
I will have been wondering
you will have been wondering
he/she/it will have been wondering
we will have been wondering
you will have been wondering
they will have been wondering
Past Perfect Continuous
I had been wondering
you had been wondering
he/she/it had been wondering
we had been wondering
you had been wondering
they had been wondering
I would wonder
you would wonder
he/she/it would wonder
we would wonder
you would wonder
they would wonder
Past Conditional
I would have wondered
you would have wondered
he/she/it would have wondered
we would have wondered
you would have wondered
they would have wondered
ThesaurusAntonymsRelated WordsSynonymsLegend:
Noun1.wonder - the feeling aroused by something strange and surprisingwonder - the feeling aroused by something strange and surprising
amazement, astonishment - the feeling that accompanies something extremely surprising; "he looked at me in astonishment"
awe - an overwhelming feeling of wonder or admiration; "he stared over the edge with a feeling of awe"
2.wonder - something that causes feelings of wonderwonder - something that causes feelings of wonder; "the wonders of modern science"
3.wonder - a state in which you want to learn more about somethingwonder - a state in which you want to learn more about something
desire to know, lust for learning, thirst for knowledge - curiosity that motivates investigation and study
curiousness, inquisitiveness - a state of active curiosity
Verb1.wonder - have a wish or desire to know something; "He wondered who had built this beautiful church"
query, question - pose a question
meditate, mull, mull over, muse, ponder, chew over, think over, excogitate, reflect, ruminate, speculate, contemplate - reflect deeply on a subject; "I mulled over the events of the afternoon"; "philosophers have speculated on the question of God for thousands of years"; "The scientist must stop to observe and start to excogitate"
scruple - have doubts about
3.wonder - be amazed at; "We marvelled at the child's linguistic abilities"
react, respond - show a response or a reaction to something


1. think, question, doubt, puzzle, speculate, query, ponder, inquire, ask yourself, meditate, be curious, conjecture, be inquisitive I wonder what he's up to. We were wondering where you were.
2. be amazed, stare, marvel, be astonished, gape, boggle, be awed, be flabbergasted (informal), gawk, be dumbstruck, stand amazed I wondered at the arrogance of the man.
1. amazement, surprise, curiosity, admiration, awe, fascination, astonishment, bewilderment, wonderment, stupefaction `How did you know that?' Bobby exclaimed in wonder.
2. phenomenon, sight, miracle, spectacle, curiosity, marvel, prodigy, rarity, portent, wonderment, nonpareil a lecture on the wonders of nature

Seven wonders of the ancient world

Colossus of Rhodes, Hanging Gardens of Babylon, mausoleum of Halicarnassus, Pharos of Alexandria, Phidias' statue of Zeus at Olympia, Pyramids of Egypt, temple of Artemis at Ephesus


1. One that evokes great surprise and admiration:
Idioms: one for the books, the eighth wonder of the world.
2. The emotion aroused by something awe-inspiring or astounding:
Archaic: admiration, dread.
3. An event inexplicable by the laws of nature:
1. To have a feeling of great awe and rapt admiration:
2. To be uncertain, disbelieving, or skeptical about:
Idiom: have one's doubts.
العَجَب، الشَّيء المُدْهِشدَهْشَه، تَعَجُّبمُعْجِزَهيَتَسَاءَلُيَتَساءَل، يَشُك، يَنْدَهِش، يَتَعَجَّب
blive overrasketdet fantastiskeforbløffelseforundringspekulere
pitati se
csodálkozáseltûnõdik vminszeretné tudni
furîalanga til aî vitaundrast, furîa sig áundrun, furîaundur, furîuverk
기이하게 여기다
įstabusnenuostabunorėti žinotinuostabumasnustebti
aizdomātiesbrīnītiesbrīnumaina īpašībabrīnumsinteresēties
byť zvedavýdiviť sapoložiť si otázku
čudežspraševati sezačudenje
merak etmekmucizeşaşılacak/hayret uyandıran şeyşaşkınlıkşaşmak
tự hỏi


A. N
1. (= feeling) → asombro m
in wonderasombrado, maravillado
to be lost in wonderquedar maravillado
2. (= object of wonder) → maravilla f; (= cause of wonder) → milagro m
the wonders of sciencelas maravillas de la ciencia
the Seven Wonders of the Worldlas Siete Maravillas del Mundo
the wonder of it was thatlo (más) asombroso fue que ...
a nine-day wonderun prodigio que deja pronto de serlo
it's a wonder thates un milagro que ...
wonders will never cease!¡todavía hay milagros!
to do wondersobrar milagros
it did wonders for her healthobró milagros en su salud
it's little or no or small wonder that he leftno es de extrañarse que se haya marchado
no wonder!¡no me extraña!
he promised wondersprometió el oro y el moro
to work wondersobrar milagros
B. VTpreguntarse
if you're wondering how to do itsi te estás preguntando cómo hacerlo
I was just wondering if you knewme preguntaba si tu sabrías ...
I wonder what he'll do nowme pregunto qué hará ahora
I wonder where Caroline is¿dónde estará Caroline?, ¿me pregunto dónde estará Caroline?
I wonder whether the milkman's beena ver si el lechero ha venido
she wondered whether to go onno sabía si seguir adelante
I wonder why she said that¿por qué diría eso?, me pregunto por qué dijo eso
1. (= ask o.s., speculate) → preguntarse, pensar
"does she know about it?" - "I wonder"-¿se habrá enterado ella? -eso mismo me pregunto yo
I wondered about that for a long timele di muchas vueltas a eso
I was wondering if you could helpte agradecería que me ayudaras
I often wonderme lo pregunto a menudo
it set me wonderingme hizo pensar
2. (= be surprised) → asombrarse, maravillarse
to wonder at sthasombrarse de algo, maravillarse de algo
that's hardly to be wondered ateso no tiene nada de extraño, no hay que asombrarse de eso
can you wonder?natural, ¿no?
I shouldn't wonder!¡sería lógico!
I shouldn't wonder ifno me sorprendería que + subjun
she's married by now, I shouldn't wonderse habrá casado ya como sería lógico, cabe presumir que está casada ya
D. CPD wonder boy Njoven m prodigio
wonder drug Nremedio m milagroso


(= amazing person or thing) → merveille f
the wonders of sth → les merveilles de qch
the wonders of modern technology → les merveilles de la technologie moderne
the seven wonders of the world → les sept merveilles du monde
the eighth wonder of the world → la huitième merveille du monde
to work wonders, to do wonders → faire merveille
(= feeling of surprise and admiration) → émerveillement m
(= surprising thing) it's a wonder that → c'est à se demander par quel miracle
It's a wonder that he wasn't seriously hurt → C'est à se demander par quel miracle il n'a pas été sérieusement blessé.
it's no wonder that → ce n'est pas étonnant que + subj
no wonder that → pas étonnant que
small wonder that ... → rien d'étonnant à ce que + subj ...
Small wonder that they feel betrayed → Rien d'étonnant à ce qu'ils se sentent trahis.
modif [goal] → d'anthologie wonder boy, wonder drug, wonder girl
(= be amazed) → s'émerveiller
to wonder at sth (in surprise)s'étonner de qch; (in admiration)s'émerveiller de qch
(= speculate) → réfléchir
to make sb wonder → faire réfléchir qn
to wonder about sth → se poser des questions sur qch
(= ask oneself) → se demander
to wonder why → se demander pourquoi
I wonder why she said that → Je me demande pourquoi elle a dit ça.
to wonder what → se demander ce que
I wonder what that means → Je me demande ce que ça veut dire.
I wondered what that noise was → Je me suis demandé ce qu'était ce bruit.
to wonder where → se demander
I wonder where Caroline is → Je me demandeest Caroline.
to wonder whether → se demander si
to wonder if → se demander si
I wonder if you could help me (= please could you) → peut-être pourriez-vous m'aiderwonder boy nenfant m prodige
the wonder boy of → l'enfant prodige duwonder drug nremède m miracle


(= feeling)Staunen nt, → Verwunderung f; in wondervoller Staunen; the birth of a baby never loses its wondereine Geburt bleibt immer etwas Wunderbares; it fills one with a sense of wonderes erfüllt einen mit Erstaunen; he has never lost that almost childlike sense of wonderer hat nie dieses kindliche Staunen verlernt
(= object or cause of wonder)Wunder nt; the wonder of electricitydas Wunder der Elektrizität; the seven wonders of the worlddie sieben Weltwunder; the wonder of it was that …das Erstaunliche or Verblüffende daran war, dass …; it is a wonder that …es ist ein Wunder, dass …; it is no or little or small wonder(es ist) kein Wunder, es ist nicht zu verwundern; no wonder (he refused)!kein Wunder(, dass er abgelehnt hat)!; to do or work wonderswahre Wunder vollbringen, Wunder wirken; wonders will never cease!es geschehen noch Zeichen und Wunder! ? nine
vt I wonder what he’ll do nowich bin gespannt, was er jetzt tun wird (inf); I wonder why he did itich möchte (zu gern) wissen or ich wüsste (zu) gern, warum er das getan hat; I wonder why! (iro)ich frag mich warum?; I was wondering if you’d like to come toomöchten Sie nicht vielleicht auch kommen?; I was wondering when you’d realize thatich habe mich (schon) gefragt, wann du das merkst; I was wondering if you could …könnten Sie nicht vielleicht …
(= ask oneself, speculate) it set me wondering or made me wonderes gab mir zu denken; why do you ask? — oh, I was just wonderingwarum fragst du? — ach, nur so; what will happen next, I wonder?ich frage mich or ich bin gespannt, was als Nächstes kommt; what’s going to happen next? — I wonder!was kommt als Nächstes? — das frage ich mich auch!; I was wondering about thatich habe mir darüber schon Gedanken gemacht, ich habe mich das auch schon gefragt; I’ve been wondering about himich habe mir auch schon über ihn Gedanken gemacht; I’ve been wondering about him as a possibilityich hatte ihn auch schon als eine Möglichkeit ins Auge gefasst; I expect that will be the end of the matter — I wonder!ich denke, damit ist die Angelegenheit erledigt — da habe ich meine Zweifel or da bin ich gespannt; I’m wondering about going to the partyich habe daran gedacht, vielleicht auf die Party zu gehen; John, I’ve been wondering, is there really any point?John, ich frage mich, ob es wirklich (einen) Zweck hat; could you possibly help me, I wonderkönnten Sie mir vielleicht helfen
(= be surprised)sich wundern; I wonder (that) he didn’t tell mees wundert mich, dass er es mir nicht gesagt hat; to wonder at somethingsich über etw (acc)wundern, über etw (acc)erstaunt sein; that’s hardly to be wondered atdas ist kaum verwunderlich; she’ll be married by now, I shouldn’t wonderes würde mich nicht wundern, wenn sie inzwischen verheiratet wäre


in cpdsWunder-;
wonder boy
nWunderknabe m
wonder drug
nWunderheilmittel nt


1. n
a. (feeling) → meraviglia, stupore m
in wonder → con stupore
lost in wonder → stupefatto/a
b. (object or cause of wonder) → miracolo, portento
the wonders of science → i miracoli della scienza
the Seven Wonders of the World → le sette meraviglie del mondo
it is no or little or small wonder that he left → c'è poco or non c'è da meravigliarsi che sia partito
the wonder of it was that ... → la cosa incredibile or sorprendente era che...
to do or work wonders → fare miracoli
no wonder! → non mi meraviglio!
no wonder he got upset → non mi stupisce che si sia arrabbiato
2. vtchiedersi, domandarsi
I wonder whether or if ... → mi chiedo se...
I was wondering if you could give me a lift → mi chiedevo se potessi darmi un passaggio
I wonder where/how/when → mi chiedo dove/come/quando
3. vi
a. (ask o.s., speculate) to wonder aboutpensare di
I was wondering about going out for dinner → pensavo di andare fuori a cena, magari
does she know about it? - I wonder → lo sa? - è quello che mi chiedo anch'io
b. (be surprised) → stupirsi, meravigliarsi
to wonder at sth → stupirsi di qc


(ˈwandə) noun
1. the state of mind produced by something unexpected or extraordinary. He was full of wonder at the amazing sight.
2. something strange, unexpected or extraordinary. the Seven Wonders of the World; You work late so often that it's a wonder you don't take a bed to the office!
3. the quality of being strange or unexpected. The wonder of the discovery is that it was only made ten years ago.
1. to be surprised. Caroline is very fond of John – I shouldn't wonder if she married him.
2. to feel curiosity or doubt. Have you ever wondered about his reasons for wanting this money?
3. to feel a desire to know. I wonder what the news is.
ˈwonderful adjective
arousing wonder; extraordinary, especially in excellence. a wonderful opportunity; a wonderful present; She's a wonderful person.
ˈwonderfully adverb
ˈwonderingly adverb
with great curiosity and amazement. The children gazed wonderingly at the puppets.
ˈwonderland (-lӕnd) noun
a land or place full of wonderful things.
ˈwondrous (ˈwandrəs) adjective
no wonder
it isn't surprising. No wonder you couldn't open the door – it was locked!


يَتَسَاءَلُ přemýšlet tænke fragen (sich) διερωτώμαι preguntarse ihmetellä se demander pitati se stupirsi 怪しむ 기이하게 여기다 afvragen (zich) undre zastanowić (się) querer saber удивляться undra สงสัย merak etmek tự hỏi 想知道


n. maravilla, prodigio, admiración; admirarse, asombrarse.
References in classic literature ?