wondrous

won·drous
W4O1N1D2R1O1U1S1
/ˈwʌndɹəs/

adjective

Wonderful; amazing, inspiring awe; marvelous.

“We all stared open-mouthed at the wondrous sight.”

Less commonScrabble 12

Meanings

adjectivewondrous (comparative more wondrous, superlative most wondrous)

comparative more wondrous · superlative most wondrous · alternative wonderous

  1. Wonderful; amazing, inspiring awe; marvelous.

    We all stared open-mouthed at the wondrous sight.

    2 more examples

    I'll show thee the best springs; I'll pluck thee berries; / I'll fish for thee, and get thee wood enough. / A plague upon the tyrant that I serve! / I'll bear him no more sticks, but follow thee, / Thou wondrous man.

    1610–1611 (date written), William Shakespeare, “The Tempest”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies […] (First Folio), London: […] Isaac Iaggard, and Ed[ward] Blount, published 1623, →OCLC, [Act II, scene ii]

    VVhen I ſurvey the vvondrous Croſs / VVhere the young Prince of Glory dy'd, / My richeſt Gain I count but Loſs, / And pour Contempt on all my Pride.

    1707, I[saac] Watts, “Crucifixion to the World by the Cross of Christ; Gal[atians] 6. 14. [When I Survey the Wondrous Cross]”, in Hymns and Spiritual Songs. […], London: […] J. Humfreys, for John Lawrence, […], →OCLC, book III (Prepared for the Holy Ordinance of the Lord’s Supper), stanza 1, page 189

    Synonyms: awesome, based, beat, beatific, bewildering, blissful, celestial, delightful

adverbwondrous (comparative more wondrous, superlative most wondrous)

comparative more wondrous · superlative most wondrous · alternative wonderous

  1. In a wonderful degree; remarkably; wondrously.

    And looking vp, when as his shield he lakt, / And sword saw not, he wexed wondrous woe

    1590, Edmund Spenser, “Book II, Canto VIII”, in The Faerie Queene. […], London: […] [John Wolfe] for William Ponsonbie, →OCLC, stanza 53
    2 more examples

    […]And even there, his eye being big with tears, / Turning his face, he put his hand behind him, / And with affection wondrous sensible / He [Antonio] wrung Bassanio's hand; and so they parted.

    c. 1596–1598 (date written), William Shakespeare, “The Merchant of Venice”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies […] (First Folio), London: […] Isaac Iaggard, and Ed[ward] Blount, published 1623, →OCLC, [Act II, scene viii]

    As by the dead we love to sit, / Become so wondrous dear, / As for the lost we grapple, / Though all the rest are here,—

    a. 1887 (date written), Emily Dickinson, “As by the dead we love to sit”, in Mabel Loomis Todd and T[homas] W[entworth] Higginson, editors, Poems, Second Series, Boston, Mass.: Roberts Brothers, published 1891, page 193

Synonyms & antonyms

More synonyms by meaning

adjectiveextraordinarily good or great; used especially as intensifiers

adverb(used as an intensifier) excellently

Synonym sets from Open English WordNet, CC BY 4.0.

Origin

  1. Proto-Germanic*wundrą“wonder”
  2. Old Englishwundres“of wonder”
  3. Middle Englishwonders“wondrous, wonderful”
  4. Middle Englishwondrous
  5. Englishwondrous

From Middle English wondrous, alteration after the suffix -ous of Middle English wonders (“wondrous, wonderful”, adjective), from Old English wundres (“of wonder”), genitive singular of wundor (“wonder, miracle”), from Proto-Germanic *wundrą (“wonder”). Compare Dutch wonder, German Wunder.

Full word history & related roots →

Translations

Bulgarian удивителен, изумителен
  • удивителен (udivitelen)amazing, inspiring awe
  • изумителен (izumitelen)amazing, inspiring awe
Catalan meravellós
  • meravellósamazing, inspiring awe
Esperanto mirinda
  • mirindaamazing, inspiring awe
Finnish ihmeellinen, vaikuttava
  • ihmeellinenamazing, inspiring awe
  • vaikuttavaamazing, inspiring awe
French merveilleux
  • merveilleuxamazing, inspiring awe
German wunderbar, wundersam
  • wunderbaramazing, inspiring awe
  • wundersamamazing, inspiring awe
  • erstaunlichamazing, inspiring awe
  • verwunderlichamazing, inspiring awe
  • bemerkenswertremarkably
Greek θαυμάσιος
  • θαυμάσιος (thavmásios)amazing, inspiring awe
Hebrew פִּלְאִי
  • פִּלְאִי (pil'í)amazing, inspiring awe
Italian meraviglioso
  • meravigliosoamazing, inspiring awe
Latin mirabilis
  • mirabilisamazing, inspiring awe
Māori whakamīharo, autaia
  • whakamīharoamazing, inspiring awe
  • autaiaamazing, inspiring awe
Norwegian underfull, vidunderlig
  • underfullamazing, inspiring awe
  • vidunderligamazing, inspiring awe
Portuguese maravilhoso
  • maravilhosoamazing, inspiring awe
Romanian minunat, remarcabil
  • minunatamazing, inspiring awe
  • remarcabilremarkably
Russian изуми́тельный, порази́тельный
  • изуми́тельный (izumítelʹnyj)amazing, inspiring awe
  • порази́тельный (porazítelʹnyj)amazing, inspiring awe
  • удиви́тельный (udivítelʹnyj)amazing, inspiring awe
  • чуде́сный (čudésnyj)amazing, inspiring awe
  • дивный (divnyj)amazing, inspiring awe
  • невиданный (nevidannyj)amazing, inspiring awe
  • удиви́тельно (udivítelʹno)remarkably
Spanish maravilloso
  • maravillosoamazing, inspiring awe
Cite this entry
APA

wondrous. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 3, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/wondrous

MLA

“wondrous.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/wondrous. Accessed November 3, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “wondrous,” accessed November 3, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/wondrous.

Source: wondrous on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.