astound

1 of 2

verb

as·​tound ə-ˈstau̇nd How to pronounce astound (audio)
astounded; astounding; astounds

transitive verb

: to fill with bewilderment or wonder
The unusual surgical techniques illustrated … will astound even the most bemused readers.Alan T. Marty

astound

2 of 2

adjective

archaic
: overwhelmed with astonishment or amazement : astounded
Choose the Right Synonym for astound

surprise, astonish, astound, amaze, flabbergast mean to impress forcibly through unexpectedness.

surprise stresses causing an effect through being unexpected but not necessarily unusual or novel.

surprised to find them at home

astonish implies surprising so greatly as to seem incredible.

a discovery that astonished the world

astound stresses the shock of astonishment.

too astounded to respond

amaze suggests an effect of bewilderment.

amazed by the immense size of the place

flabbergast may suggest thorough astonishment and bewilderment or dismay.

flabbergasted by his angry refusal

Examples of astound in a Sentence

Verb The magician will astound you with his latest tricks. What astounds me is that they never apologized.
Recent Examples on the Web
Verb
That commitment even extended to filming much of the movie in the house where Haigh grew up, a notion that astounded many of his actors. Kyle Buchanan, New York Times, 17 Jan. 2024 The situation astounded Peter Feaver, a political science professor at Duke University and an expert in civilian-military relations. Tom Vanden Brook, USA TODAY, 8 Jan. 2024 She was delighted by the cheap nylon stockings and astounded by the food. John Kelly, Washington Post, 2 Dec. 2023 Stafford had suffered a shoulder injury, but his growth as a quarterback astounded Robinson. Gary Klein, Los Angeles Times, 12 Jan. 2024 In 1967, the IDF astounded the world by defeating Egypt, Jordan, and Syria in six days—capturing the Sinai, the Gaza Strip, the West Bank, and the Golan Heights. TIME, 11 Jan. 2024 One of the biggest green flags about this lip gloss is that it's not filled with chunks of glitter and opts for a glaze-like finish that even glazed donut skin queen Hailey Bieber would be astounded by. Jennifer Hussein, Allure, 28 Dec. 2023 His performance astounded, and his career took off. Ellen Wexler, Smithsonian Magazine, 22 Nov. 2023 In the two decades since co-founding our company, I have been astounded by the sector’s pace of growth and the promise of emerging markets. Sam Darwish, Forbes, 29 Nov. 2023
Adjective
After all that food, this nest of noodles in a tendon-dashi broth still manages to astound. Elazar Sontag, Bon Appétit, 13 Sep. 2023 Honda versus Toyota is an obvious matchup, with our range-topping contenders offering many of the same safety and convenience features, similar storage space, and standard all-wheel drive, wrapped up in blunt-nosed boxy designs that will neither offend nor astound. Elana Scherr, Car and Driver, 30 Aug. 2023 And the show only gets better with each passing episode, finding a balance in tone and thematic material while also continuing to astound viewers with impressive visuals. Robert English, EW.com, 18 Apr. 2023

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'astound.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

Etymology

Verb

probably in part derivative of astound entry 2, in part back-formation from astounded (Middle English astondid, attested once), doubled past participle of astonen, astonien "to stun, daze, surprise" — more at astonish

Adjective

Middle English astoned, past participle of astonen "to stun, daze, surprise" — more at astonish

First Known Use

Verb

1592, in the meaning defined above

Adjective

14th century, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of astound was in the 14th century

Dictionary Entries Near astound

Cite this Entry

“Astound.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/astound. Accessed 28 Mar. 2024.

Kids Definition

astound

verb
as·​tound
ə-ˈstau̇nd
: to fill with puzzled wonder

More from Merriam-Webster on astound

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