1
: one that causes wonder or astonishment
her talent is a marvel to behold
… with that marvel of architecture before our eyes …—
Martha Kean
Martha Kean2
: intense surprise or interest : astonishment
… his voice filled with marvel …—Mordecai Richler
Mordecai Richler
marveled or marvelled; marveling or marvelling
ˈmärv-liŋ 
ˈmär-və-
: to become filled with surprise, wonder, or amazed curiosity
marveled at the magician's skill
: to feel astonishment or perplexity at or about
marveled that they had escaped
Synonyms
Examples of marvel in a Sentence
Noun
that new electric car really is a marvel
Verb
The doctors marveled that anyone could recover so quickly.
Recent Examples on the WebKatie Kitamura, Travel + Leisure, 25 Apr. 2024
In its attempt to sell its technology to other businesses, Amazon is also trying to counter some recent viral social media posts that claimed the checkout system was not a technological marvel but was instead powered by contractors in India who manually added up items in carts as customers shopped.
—Haleluya Hadero, Quartz, 17 Apr. 2024
Known as the LeBlanc Castle, this architectural marvel boasts gothic-style medieval motifs both inside and out.
—Detroit Free Press, 9 Apr. 2024
Whistler loved the marvels and eccentricities of storefronts.
—Sebastian Smee, Washington Post, 9 Apr. 2024
While snorkeling, other marine marvels include Great Barracudas and graceful leatherback turtles, to dozens of other fish.
—Claire Volkman, Robb Report, 26 Mar. 2024
On her 12th studio album, Shakira fully invests in these cross-genre marvels — songs with rapper Cardi B, Tejano band Grupo Frontera, Mexican corridos group Fuerza Regida and EDM masters Bizarrap and Tiesto, among others — that together represent the soundscape of current-day Latin pop.
—Thania Garcia, Variety, 22 Mar. 2024
Related article While many flock to see the eclipse, these cultures are doing something different
A total of 32 million people in the US are located within the eclipse’s 115-mile-wide path of totality and will have the chance to see the cosmological marvel.
—Elisa Raffa, CNN, 7 Apr. 2024
That the grain of the marvel was always there is sensed only in retrospect.
—Mark Swed, Los Angeles Times, 4 Apr. 2024
Steve Galluzzo, Los Angeles Times, 21 Apr. 2024
The app appears to be able to recognize and transcribe other languages, too; one user spoke in Russian and the transcript appeared in Cyrillic, while another spoke in Moroccan Arabic, known as darija, and then marveled in a follow-up voice note at how good the transcription was.
—Lauren Goode, WIRED, 15 Apr. 2024
The Negro press, generous toward all Black celebrity, gave him plenty of coverage, as did the mainstream media, which was still marveling at his athletic feats.
—Wil Haygood, Washington Post, 11 Apr. 2024
The Liverpool Legends, a Beatles tribute band, paused during their performance in Russellville, Ark., to marvel at the moment.
—Christopher Maag, New York Times, 9 Apr. 2024
All spring, the Dodgers marveled at how far ahead of schedule outfield prospect Andy Pages was in his recovery from shoulder surgery last season.
—Jack Harris, Los Angeles Times, 16 Apr. 2024
Millions of people will tilt their heads skyward on Monday, marveling at a total solar eclipse.
—Nicholas Bogel-Burroughs, New York Times, 8 Apr. 2024
Online commentators also marveled at Yellen’s dexterity with chopsticks, after a Weibo account affiliated with state broadcaster CCTV released a short video showing her dining at a Cantonese restaurant in Guangzhou.
—Nectar Gan, CNN, 8 Apr. 2024
Two years later, the hospital published an article marveling over her weight-loss journey.
—Audrey Richardson and Aurora Sousanis, USA TODAY, 6 Apr. 2024
Noun
American architect Kendrick Bangs Kellogg’s Stone Church is a marvel of organic form, as is a museum dedicated to the art of painter Hiroshi Senju by the Pritzker Prize–winning Ryue Nishizawa.
—Katie Kitamura, Travel + Leisure, 25 Apr. 2024
In its attempt to sell its technology to other businesses, Amazon is also trying to counter some recent viral social media posts that claimed the checkout system was not a technological marvel but was instead powered by contractors in India who manually added up items in carts as customers shopped.
—Haleluya Hadero, Quartz, 17 Apr. 2024
Known as the LeBlanc Castle, this architectural marvel boasts gothic-style medieval motifs both inside and out.
—Detroit Free Press, 9 Apr. 2024
Whistler loved the marvels and eccentricities of storefronts.
—Sebastian Smee, Washington Post, 9 Apr. 2024
While snorkeling, other marine marvels include Great Barracudas and graceful leatherback turtles, to dozens of other fish.
—Claire Volkman, Robb Report, 26 Mar. 2024
On her 12th studio album, Shakira fully invests in these cross-genre marvels — songs with rapper Cardi B, Tejano band Grupo Frontera, Mexican corridos group Fuerza Regida and EDM masters Bizarrap and Tiesto, among others — that together represent the soundscape of current-day Latin pop.
—Thania Garcia, Variety, 22 Mar. 2024
Related article While many flock to see the eclipse, these cultures are doing something different
A total of 32 million people in the US are located within the eclipse’s 115-mile-wide path of totality and will have the chance to see the cosmological marvel.
—Elisa Raffa, CNN, 7 Apr. 2024
That the grain of the marvel was always there is sensed only in retrospect.
—Mark Swed, Los Angeles Times, 4 Apr. 2024
Verb
Ganassi marveled at how his driver called upon years of experience to navigate the final stages after making his last pit stop on Lap 61.
—Steve Galluzzo, Los Angeles Times, 21 Apr. 2024
The app appears to be able to recognize and transcribe other languages, too; one user spoke in Russian and the transcript appeared in Cyrillic, while another spoke in Moroccan Arabic, known as darija, and then marveled in a follow-up voice note at how good the transcription was.
—Lauren Goode, WIRED, 15 Apr. 2024
The Negro press, generous toward all Black celebrity, gave him plenty of coverage, as did the mainstream media, which was still marveling at his athletic feats.
—Wil Haygood, Washington Post, 11 Apr. 2024
The Liverpool Legends, a Beatles tribute band, paused during their performance in Russellville, Ark., to marvel at the moment.
—Christopher Maag, New York Times, 9 Apr. 2024
All spring, the Dodgers marveled at how far ahead of schedule outfield prospect Andy Pages was in his recovery from shoulder surgery last season.
—Jack Harris, Los Angeles Times, 16 Apr. 2024
Millions of people will tilt their heads skyward on Monday, marveling at a total solar eclipse.
—Nicholas Bogel-Burroughs, New York Times, 8 Apr. 2024
Online commentators also marveled at Yellen’s dexterity with chopsticks, after a Weibo account affiliated with state broadcaster CCTV released a short video showing her dining at a Cantonese restaurant in Guangzhou.
—Nectar Gan, CNN, 8 Apr. 2024
Two years later, the hospital published an article marveling over her weight-loss journey.
—Audrey Richardson and Aurora Sousanis, USA TODAY, 6 Apr. 2024
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'marvel.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Dictionary Entries Near marvel
Cite this Entry
“Marvel.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/marvel. Accessed 2 May. 2024.
Copy CitationKids Definition
marvel
1 of 2 noun
mar·vel
ˈmär-vəl
: one that causes wonder or astonishment
marvel
2 of 2 verb
marveled or marvelled; marveling or marvelling
ˈmärv-(ə-)liŋ
: to become filled with surprise or astonishment
marveled at the magician's skill
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