gobsmackingadj.
/ˈɡɒbsmakɪŋ/, U.S. /ˈɡɑbˌsmækɪŋ/ Originally British.
That causes astonishment; astounding, breathtaking, staggering.
ΘΚΠ
the mind > mental capacity > expectation > feeling of wonder, astonishment > quality of inspiring wonder > [adjective]
wonderlyc893
wonderfula1100
wondera1175
wondersa1300
marvellousc1330
marvela1400
marvelly?a1400
mirablec1429
admirablec1450
marvellablec1450
mirific1490
wondrous1509
extonious1548
portentious1549
miraculous1569
geason1572
mirificalc1572
astounding1590
amazing1593
wonderedc1595
admiring1598
prodigious1600
astonishable1603
fabulous1609
wondered-at?1611
necromantic1627
stupendous1640
nigromantic1645
mirandous1652
surprising1665
mirabundous1694
astonishinga1704
wondersome1774
sublime1813
nasty1834
kill-me-quite1842
breathtaking1843
breath-catching1865
miracle-working1867
mouth opening1867
stupefying1870
gee whiz1889
scorching1890
doozy1903
sensational1909
eye-popping1918
wunnerful1924
crashing1931
staggering1934
eyewatering1950
mind-boggling1955
Ozymandian1961
knock-out1966
mind-blowing1966
motherfucking1973
boggling1975
gobsmacking1981
tubular1982
1981 Mountain July 22/3 ‘Has it been a good trip?’ ‘Gobsmacking.’
1986 Guardian 13 Dec. 9/8 A father's presence at the birth of his child does not guarantee a wonderful ‘birthing experience’ which will keep the family together through the traumas of lost dummies, dim sex life, and gobsmacking weariness.
1997 I. Sinclair Lights out for Territory (1998) 170 The secretary..retreated to her gantry, leaving us to come to terms with this gobsmacking exhibition of wealth and privilege.
2007 N.Y. Times (National ed.) 3 May b1/4 A tale rich in sentimental unions and sinister deeds, heart-tugging partings and gobsmacking coincidences.
Derivatives
ˈgobsmackingly adv.
ΚΠ
1988 Illustr. London News July 67/3 Schiller's Don Carlos is a gob-smackingly good play.
2000 A. Jenkins Honeymoon i. 4 All that was pre-Ed and now I'm post-Ed and not only born again but—gobsmackingly—on the brink of matrimony.
2006 Courier-Mail (Brisbane) 25 Aug. 86/2 (heading) It was a gobsmackingly beautiful site.
This entry has been updated (OED Third Edition, December 2016; most recently modified version published online March 2022).
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adj.1981