Astounding

Part of speech: adjective

Pronunciation: /əˈstaʊndɪŋ/

Definitions

1. Astonishingly impressive and remarkably surprising, often leading to feelings of disbelief or admiration in those who experience it
2. Exceptional in quality or nature, evoking admiration and wonder due to its overwhelming impact or unexpectedness
3. Impressively remarkable and astonishing, often causing surprise or admiration in observers due to its extraordinary nature or impact

Etymology: "Astounding" is the present participle of "astound," and "astound" is itself a past participle that became a verb in Middle English. The root is "astonish," and the two words are close relatives: "astound" grew out of the same Middle English stock of verbs as "astonish," meaning to stun or stupefy someone with shock. Over time the "stun" sense softened, so that a thing described as astounding now usually impresses rather than knocks us flat. The verb's older form was "astoned" or "astuned," and the surviving spelling "astound" settled in later. The shift from physical stunning to admiring wonder is the key to the modern adjective: something astounding leaves a person so struck that they can only marvel at it.

Synonyms: amazing, astonishing, stunning

Antonyms: unimpressive, ordinary