wondern.
/ˈwʌndə/, U.S. /ˈwəndər/ I. Something that causes astonishment.† 5. † b. Destruction, disaster. Obsolete.† c. Great distress or grief. Obsolete.
1.
a. A marvellous object; a marvel, prodigy. the seven wonders of the world (= Latin septem mira, miracula, or spectacula), the seven monuments regarded as the most remarkable structures of ancient times; so eighth wonder of the world (used hyperbolically of any impressive object, etc.); nine days' wonder, and allusive uses: see nine adj. 3a.
ΘΚΠ
the mind > mental capacity > expectation > feeling of wonder, astonishment > [noun]
wonderc700
wonderingOE
ferlya1300
marvelc1330
stupora1398
admirationc1425
admirativec1487
amazement1576
mazement1580
stupefaction1592
amazedness1593
astonishment1594
stonishment1594
amaze1598
surprisal1652
staggerment1933
the mind > mental capacity > expectation > feeling of wonder, astonishment > quality of inspiring wonder > [noun] > a marvel, object of wonder
wonderc700
wonderinga1100
selcouthc1175
sellya1200
ferlyc1275
wondernessc1275
wonder thingc1290
adventurec1300
marvelc1300
marvellingc1400
wonderelc1440
signc1450
admiration1490
wonderment1542
wondering stockc1555
miracle-worker1561
singularity1576
stupor mundi1587
miracle1595
marvellation1599
portent1607
astonishment1611
prodigy1616
magnale1623
magnality1646
mirable1646
phenomenon1741
gaping-stock1817
reacher1825
stunner1829
buster1833
caution1834
merry-go-rounder1838
knock-down1843
astonisher1871
marvelry1874
mazer1876
phenom1881
whizzer1888
knock-out1892
whizz1908
doozy1916
doozer1930
heart-stopper1940
blockbuster1942
ooh-ah1957
mind-blower1968
stonker1987
society > communication > record > memorial or monument > [noun] > structure or erection > specific
Arthur's hovec1377
milliarium1591
the seven wonders of the worlda1616
the mind > mental capacity > expectation > feeling of wonder, astonishment > quality of inspiring wonder > [noun] > a marvel, object of wonder > sights worth seeing
lions1590
the seven wonders of the worlda1616
c700 Cædmon Hymn 3 Sue he uundra gihuaes..or astelidæ.
OE Beowulf 840 Ferdon folctogan..geond widwegas wundor sceawian, laþes lastas.
a1000 Solomon & Saturn 281 Ac hwæt is ðæt wundor ðe geond ðas worold færeð, styrnenga gæð?
c1275 (?a1200) Laȝamon Brut (Calig.) (1978) l. 10847 Þa..gunnen to fleonnen..into þan watere þer wunderes [c1300 Otho wondres] beoð inoȝe.
1297 R. Gloucester's Chron. (Rolls) 151 Mirabilia Anglie. Þre wondres beþ in engelond,..Þat water of baþe is þat on, þat euere is iliche hot.
1297 R. Gloucester's Chron. (Rolls) 155 Vpe þe plein of salesbury þat oþer wonder is Þat ston heng is icluped.
a1387 J. Trevisa tr. R. Higden Polychron. (St. John's Cambr.) (1865) I. 43 For þey schulde..write and certifie þe senatoures where and what wondres were i-founde.
1597 W. Shakespeare Romeo & Juliet iii. iii. 36 Carrion flyes..may seaze On the white wonder of faire Iuliets skinne. View more context for this quotation
a1616 W. Shakespeare Two Gentlemen of Verona (1623) i. i. 6 I rather would entreat thy company, To see the wonders of the world abroad. View more context for this quotation
1616 R. Cocks Diary (1883) I. 194 I doo esteem it [sc. the idol] to be bigger then that at Roads, which was taken for 1 of the 7 wonders of the world.
1681 C. Cotton Wonders of Peake 47 Under this Castle yawns a dreadful Cave. [Note] Peake's-Arse, the sixth Wonder.
1714 A. Pope Rape of Lock (new ed.) i. 9 The Fair..Repairs her Smiles,..And calls forth all the Wonders of her Face.
1774 O. Goldsmith Hist. Earth I. 267 All the wonders of the Mediterranean sea are described in much higher colours than they merit.
1831 M. Edgeworth Let. 20 Jan. (1971) 473 A..spoiled child of 30 whose mother and father having not been able to conceal from him that they think him the 8th wonder of the world have at last brought him to acquiesce in their opinion.
1878 R. Browning La Saisiaz 71 We must have our journey marge Ample for the wayside wonders.
1930 Amer. Speech 6 Eighth wonder of the world... Ford runabout.
1977 H. Fast Immigrants iv. 267 I rode the first cable car on California Street... The Eighth Wonder of the World.
b. Marvellous character or quality; wonderfulness; marvels collectively. (Cf. marvel n.1 2c.)
ΘΚΠ
the mind > mental capacity > expectation > feeling of wonder, astonishment > quality of inspiring wonder > [noun]
wonderc1220
marvelc1300
marvelness1434
marvellousness1538
wonderfulness1574
miraculousness1581
wonderment1596
prodigiousness1649
mirability1650
stupendiousness1652
amazingness1677
stupendousnessa1706
wondrousness1851
stupendiosity1912
the mind > mental capacity > expectation > feeling of wonder, astonishment > quality of inspiring wonder > [noun] > a marvel, object of wonder > marvels collectively
wonderc1220
admirables1547
magnalia1650
the wonderful1727
marvellous1741
mirabilia1821
marvel1866
c1220 Bestiary 266 Ȝet is wunder of ðis wirm [sc. the ant] More ðanne man weneð.
a1616 W. Shakespeare Macbeth (1623) i. v. 6 Whiles I stood rapt in the wonder of it, came Missiues from the King. View more context for this quotation
a1616 W. Shakespeare Tempest (1623) v. i. 184 Mir. O wonder! How many goodly creatures are there heere? View more context for this quotation
1623 W. Shakespeare & J. Fletcher Henry VIII v. iv. 40 As when The Bird of Wonder dyes, the Mayden Phoenix, Her Ashes new create another Heyre. View more context for this quotation
1667 J. Milton Paradise Lost vii. 70 Great things, and full of wonder in our eares. View more context for this quotation
a1771 T. Gray tr. T. Tasso in Wks. (1814) II. 91 Great things and full of wonder in your ears I shall unfold.
1801 M. G. Lewis (title) Tales of Wonder.
1842 Ld. Tennyson Locksley Hall in Poems (new ed.) II. 93 When I dipt into the future..; Saw the Vision of the world, and all the wonder that would be.
1872 W. Black Strange Adventures Phaeton ix. 129 We went out into the bright wonder of the moonlight.
c. (transferred from sense 7.) The object of astonishment (usually implying profound admiration) for a particular country, people, age, or the like. world's wonder: the Marvel of Peru. wonder of the world, the ginseng, Panax Shinseng ( Treas. Bot. 1866).
ΘΚΠ
the mind > attention and judgement > esteem > admiration > [noun] > object of admiration
wonder1597
the mind > mental capacity > expectation > feeling of wonder, astonishment > quality of inspiring wonder > [noun] > a marvel, object of wonder > for a particular time, etc.
wonder1597
the world > plants > particular plants > cultivated or valued plants > particular cultivated or ornamental plants > particular flower or plant esteemed for flower > [noun] > non-British flowers > of south or tropical America
marvel of Peru1597
flower of the night1665
world's wonder1706
butterfly flower1731
mirabilis1754
four o'clock flower1756
bastard mustard1759
Browallia1782
bastard plantain1796
cleome1806
alonsoa1812
gloxinia1816
schizanthus1823
butterfly plant1825
petunia1825
sinningia1826
salpiglossis1827
mask flower1834
poinsettia1836
guaco1844
spiderwort1846
mist flower1848
balisier1858
spider flower1861
sun plant1862
eucharis1866
pretty-by-night1869
Rocky Mountain bee plant1870
urn-flower1891
tulip-poppy1909
smithiantha1917
poor man's orchid1922
ten o'clock1953
tiger-iris-
1597 R. Hooker Of Lawes Eccl. Politie v. xi. 19 The bewtie whereof..was such, that euen this was..the wonder of the whole world.
1607 R. Pricket Ld. Coke his Speech & Charge sig. F This Sea-Inuyrond-Iland, the beauty, and wonder of the world.
a1616 W. Shakespeare Henry VI, Pt. 1 (1623) iv. vii. 48 Hack their bones assunder, Whose life was Englands glory, Gallia's wonder . View more context for this quotation
1639 J. Mayne Citye Match i. iv She's the wonder of the Court, And talke oth' Towne.
1671 J. Milton Paradise Regain'd iii. 279 Babylon the wonder of all tongues. View more context for this quotation
1706 Phillips's New World of Words (new ed.) at Marvel of Peru A kind of Night-shade..with Flowers of such Variety that it is also call'd The World's Wonder.
1734 A. Pope Epist. to Visct. Cobham 9 Clodio, the Scorn and Wonder of our days.
1831 E. Burton Lect. Eccl. Hist. i. vii. 205 In Ephesus this feeling found an additional vent in the pride of having their temple considered the wonder of the world.
d. A marvellous specimen or example (of something); in Scottish used contemptuously. boneless wonder, a gymnast; figurative, someone or something lacking ‘backbone’; chinless wonder: see chinless wonder at chinless adj. b.
ΘΚΠ
the mind > mental capacity > expectation > feeling of wonder, astonishment > quality of inspiring wonder > [noun] > instance or example of
miraclea1393
stupora1398
prodigy1595
wonderment1606
wonder1721
marvela1785
the mind > emotion > fear > cowardice or pusillanimity > [noun] > coward(s)
coward?a1289
hen-hearta1450
staniel?a1500
pigeon?1571
cow1581
quake-breech1584
cow-baby1594
custard1598
chicken heart1602
nidget1605
hen?1613
faintling1614
white-liver1614
chickena1616
quake-buttocka1627
skitterbrooka1652
dunghill1761
cow-heart1768
shy-cock1768
fugie1777
slag1788
man of chaff1799
fainter1826
possum1833
cowardy, cowardy, custard1836
sheep1840
white feather1857
funk1859
funkstick1860
lily-liver1860
faint-heart1870
willy boy1895
blert1905
squib1908
fraid cat (also fraidy cat)c1910–23
manso1912
feartie1923
yellowbelly1927
chicken liver1930
boneless wonder1931
scaredy-cat1933
sook1933
pantywaist1935
punk1939
ringtail1941
chickenshit1945
candy-ass1953
pansy-ass1963
unbrave1981
bottler1994
society > leisure > sport > types of sport or game > gymnastics > [noun] > gymnast
gymnast1594
turner1854
gymnasiast1857
boneless wonder1931
1721 R. Bradley Philos. Acct. Wks. Nature 182 In this Wonder of a Garden there is neither Grass-work nor Gravel.
1786 R. Burns Twa Dogs ix, in Poems 12 Our Whipper-in, wee, blastet wonner, Poor, worthless elf.
1855 C. Kingsley Westward Ho! xxiii But surely she was a very wonder of beauty!
1898 Atlantic Monthly 82 499/2 It was a wonder of beauty,..the fairest piece of earth my eye ever rested upon.
1931 W. S. Churchill in Hansard Commons 28 Jan. 1022 I remember, when I was a child, being taken to the celebrated Barnum's Circus... The exhibit on the programme which I most desired to see was the one described as ‘The Boneless Wonder’. My parents judged that that spectacle would be too revolting and demoralising for my youthful eyes, and I have waited 50 years to see the boneless wonder sitting on the Treasury Bench.
1946 Scrutiny XIV. i. 67 The tradition of Chattertonian boy wonders.
1951 ‘J. Tey’ Daughter of Time xiv. 186 The spectacle of Dr. Gairdner trying to make his facts fit his theory was the most entertaining thing in gymnastics that Grant had witnessed... As a contortionist Dr. Gairdner was the original boneless wonder.
1963 Guardian 15 Feb. 20/6 One of those boneless wonders that go by the name of ‘Observer’ editorials.
1967 M. Shulman Kill 3 iv. ii. 168 Reconciling more contradictory positions than could be broken up by a boneless wonder on a trapeze.
e. U.S. A kind of cake; = cruller n.
ΘΚΠ
the world > food and drink > food > dishes and prepared food > cake > [noun] > a cake > other cakes
honey appleeOE
barley-cake1393
seed cakea1400
cake?a1425
pudding-cake?1553
manchet1562
biscuit cake1593
placent1598
poplin1600
jumbal1615
bread pudding1623
semel1643
wine-cakea1661
Shrewsbury cake1670
curd cake1675
fruitcake1687
clap-bread1691
simnel cake1699
orange-flower cake1718
banana cake1726
sweet-cake1726
torte1748
Naples cake1766
Bath cake1769
gofer1769
yeast-cake1795
nutcake1801
tipsy-cake1806
cruller1808
baba1813
lady's finger1818
coconut cake1824
mint cake1825
sices1825
cup-cake1828
batter-cake1830
buckwheat1830
Dundee seed cake1833
fat-cake1839
babka1846
wonder1848
popover1850
cream-cake1855
sly-cake1855
dripping-cake1857
lard-cake1858
puffet1860
quick cake1865
barnbrack1867
matrimony cake1871
brioche1873
Nelson cake1877
cocoa cake1883
sesame cake1883
marinade1888
mystery1889
oblietjie1890
stuffed monkey1892
Greek bread1893
Battenberg1903
Oswego cake1907
nusstorte1911
dump cake1912
Dobos Torte1915
lekach1918
buckle1935
Florentine1936
hash cake1967
space cake1984
1848 D. Drake Pioneer Life Kentucky (1870) 97 Other dainties awaited us as the result of killing hogs. They were ‘dough-nuts’ and ‘wonders’.
1859 H. B. Stowe Minister's Wooing iv. 34 A plate of crullers or wonders, as a sort of sweet fried cake was commonly called.
2. † b. An extraordinary natural occurrence, esp. when regarded as supernatural or taken as an omen or portent. Chiefly plural. Obsolete.
a. A deed performed or an event brought about by miraculous or supernatural power; a miracle. to do wonders, to perform miracles. archaic.See also to work wonders at work v. Phrases 1a.
ΘΚΠ
the world > the supernatural > the occult > sorcery, witchcraft, or magic > [verb (intransitive)] > work wonders or miracles
to do wondersc950
to work a wonderOE
miracle1548
wonder1785
thaumaturgize1891
the world > the supernatural > the occult > sorcery, witchcraft, or magic > [noun] > working wonders or miracles > miracle
wonderc950
wonder-work971
miracle?a1160
mighty work1568
miraculous1836
the mind > mental capacity > expectation > feeling of wonder, astonishment > quality of inspiring wonder > [noun] > event
wonderc950
miraclec1390
marl1604
phenomenon1741
weird1814
sensation1860
masterpiece1933
wipeout1968
c950 Lindisf. Gosp. John ii. 11 Ðis uorhte frumma ðara uundra se hælend in ðær byrig.
971 Blickl. Hom. 15 Eal þæt folc þe þis wundor geseah, his noman myccledon.
c1175 Ormulum (Burchfield transcript) l. 9499 Crist..wrohhte wunndre miccle ma Þann icc ȝuw maȝȝ nu tellenn.
c1275 Passion our Lord 60 in Old Eng. Misc. 39 Hi seyden..Alle his wndres þat he doþ is þurch þene vend.
a1387 J. Trevisa tr. R. Higden Polychron. (St. John's Cambr.) (1871) III. 125 By wycchecraft he schal wirche wondres.
c1400 Mandeville's Trav. (Roxb.) xi. 43 With þat ilke ȝerde Moyses..didd many wonders.
a1525 (c1448) R. Holland Bk. Howlat l. 785 in W. A. Craigie Asloan MS (1925) II. 119 He couth wirk wounderis quhat way yat he wald.
1526 W. Bonde Pylgrimage of Perfection i. sig. Bi For they se hym in his great miracles and wonders.
1562 N. Winȝet Certain Tractates (1888) I. 17 He send His Apostolis and seuinty-twa Discipulis..geuand thaim also power to wyrk wounderis.
a1616 W. Shakespeare Henry VI, Pt. 1 (1623) v. vi. 48 You iudge it straight a thing impossible To compasse Wonders, but by helpe of diuels. View more context for this quotation
1662 E. Stillingfleet Origines Sacræ ii. iii. §6 That doctrine which was confirmed by undoubted miracles, hath assured us of the coming of lying wonders.
1781 W. Cowper Expostulation 155 They saw distemper heal'd, and life restor'd,..Confess'd the wonder.
1846 R. C. Trench Notes Miracles Introd. i. 6 The healing of the paralytic..was a wonder, for ‘they were all amazed’.
ΘΚΠ
the mind > mental capacity > expectation > foresight, foreknowledge > prediction, foretelling > an omen, sign, portent > [noun]
foretokenc888
tokeningc888
beaconc950
token971
handsela1200
boding1297
wonder1297
bodec1374
signa1387
foreboding1387
prenostica1393
prognosticc1425
prophetc1430
prognostication?a1439
ostentationa1450
prenostication?a1450
prodigy?a1450
augurationc1450
preparative1460
prenosticate?a1475
prenosticative?a1475
prodige1482
prenosticature1490
tokener1513
weird1513
show token1535
luck1538
prognosticate1541
preamble1548
proffer1548
presagition?c1550
foreshower1555
presage1560
portent1562
ostent1570
presagie1581
omen1582
presagement1586
luck sign1587
augury1588
prognosticon1588
forerunner1589
presager1591
halfner1594
spae1596
abode1598
oss1600
assign1601
augur1603
bodement1613
predictiona1616
prognosticala1618
bespeaker1624
portender1635
pre-indicant1659
foreshadow1834
boder1846
prognosticant1880
sky sign1880
the world > the supernatural > the occult > sorcery, witchcraft, or magic > [noun] > working wonders or miracles > miracle > natural occurrence regarded as supernatural
wonder1297
the mind > mental capacity > expectation > feeling of wonder, astonishment > quality of inspiring wonder > [noun] > a marvel, object of wonder > regarded as unnatural
wonder1297
monsterc1384
prodigy1595
1297 R. Gloucester's Chron. (Rolls) 8612 Wanne me sede him of suche wondres þat god on erþe sende Þat it was vor is luþernesse to trufle he it wende.
1340 R. Rolle Pricke of Conscience 4004 For wonders þat shuld falle, als I trow, Agayn þe worldes hende er sene now.
1513 G. Douglas tr. Virgil Æneid viii. viii. 36 We haue bot sobir pissance, and no wonder, To help in battale.
c1540 (?a1400) Destr. Troy 11827 When he wist of thies wondres, thies wordes he said: ‘Yonder towne wilbe takon in a tyme short.’
1560 J. Daus tr. J. Sleidane Commentaries f. ccccxxij He rekened vp the wonders that went before his death.
1596 J. Dalrymple tr. J. Leslie Hist. Scotl. (1888) I. 13 Mony sygnes be God war schawne and wonndiris.
1655 T. Stanley Hist. Philos. I. ii. 14 Of the wonder [sc. a meteor] Aristotle gives a very slight accompt.
1681 J. Dryden Absalom & Achitophel 10 My Father Governs with unquestion'd Right;..And Heav'n by Wonders has Espous'd his Cause.
3. A marvellous act or achievement. to do or perform wonders: to do marvellous acts or bring about marvellous results; hence gen. to do surprising things.See also to work wonders at work v. Phrases 1a.
ΘΚΠ
the mind > mental capacity > expectation > feeling of wonder, astonishment > quality of inspiring wonder > [noun] > act or achievement
wonder-work971
wonder?1473
miracle1586
coup d'éclat1668
coup de théâtre1747
c1220 Bestiary 398 Listneð nu a wunder, Ðat tis der [sc. the fox] doð for hunger.
1390 J. Gower Confessio Amantis I. 5 This bok schal afterward ben ended Of love, which doth many a wonder.
1390 J. Gower Confessio Amantis I. 136 With strengthe he [sc. Nebuchadnezzar] putte kinges under, And wroghte of Pride many a wonder.
?1473 W. Caxton tr. R. Le Fèvre Recuyell Hist. Troye (1894) II. lf. 188v In this bataill hercules dide wondres & meruailles.
a1616 W. Shakespeare Henry VI, Pt. 1 (1623) i. i. 122 Where valiant Talbot..Enacted wonders with his Sword and Lance. View more context for this quotation
1660 F. Brooke tr. V. Le Blanc World Surveyed 295 Don Sebastian did wonders in his own person, but overpowred with number, he [etc.].
1727 E. Laurence Duty of Steward 207 Lay on Twenty Loads of Chalk alone upon an Acre, and it will perform wonders.
1731 in 10th Rep. Royal Comm. Hist. MSS (1885) App. i. 270 The Millypedes or Wood-lice have a sulphureous spirit in them wch I have known do wonders on weak constitutions.
1785 W. Cowper Tirocinium in Task 23 For her the fancy, roving unconfin'd,..Works magic wonders . View more context for this quotation
1785 W. Cowper Task iv. 87 Katterfelto, with his hair on end At his own wonders.
1827 B. Disraeli Vivian Grey III. v. vi. 111 Inspired by your ladyship's approbation, my steward has really done wonders.
1834 L. Ritchie Wanderings by Seine 192 Habit effects wonders.
4. † b. apparently = miracle n. 2b. Obsolete.
a. gen. An astonishing occurrence, event, or fact; a surprising incident; a wonderful thing. to hear, read, speak, talk wonders, to hear, etc., surprising accounts.
ΚΠ
1297 R. Gloucester's Chron. (Rolls) 319 A temple hii vovnde vair inou & a maumet amidde Þat ofte tolde wonder gret & ȝwat men bitidde.
1390 J. Gower Confessio Amantis II. 67 Who that wolde ensample take..Of many a wondre hiere he mihte.
a1398 J. Trevisa tr. Bartholomaeus Anglicus De Proprietatibus Rerum (BL Add. 27944) (1975) II. xvi. xlviii. 852 Isider..seiþ þat þis stoon [sc. Gete] is ytend in water and yquenched in oyle, and þat is wonder.
a1400 (a1325) Cursor Mundi (Trin. Cambr.) l. 11 Men ȝernen..romaunce rede..Of kyng Arthour..Of wondris þat his knyȝtes felle.
1553 T. Wilson Arte of Rhetorique 47 b I ought..not turne my tale to talke of Robbyn Hoode,..or to speake wounders of the man in the Mone.
1604 E. Grimeston tr. J. de Acosta Nat. & Morall Hist. Indies iii. xvi. 171 Some of these Lakes be very hote, which is another wonder.
a1616 W. Shakespeare Merry Wives of Windsor (1623) v. i. 12 Bee you in the Parke about midnight, at Hernes-Oake, and you shall see wonders . View more context for this quotation
1620 F. Beaumont & J. Fletcher Phylaster ii. 16 The loue of boyes vnto their Lords is strange, I haue read wonders of it.
1686 tr. J. Chardin Trav. Persia 136 They talk Wonders of her Beauty.
1785 W. Cowper Task iv. 563 The chilling tale Of midnight murder was a wonder..told to frighten babes.
1823 W. Scott Quentin Durward II. ix. 209 Why should you make a wonder of my wearing the badge of my company?
1890 E. S. Hartland Sci. Fairy Tales (1891) i. 1 The weary hunters beguile the long silence of a desert night with the mirth and wonders of a tale.
ΘΚΠ
society > leisure > the arts > performance arts > drama > a play > [noun] > mystery or miracle play
miraclec1395
resurrectiona1400
wonder1435
mystery1555
scaffold play1565
miracle play1602
mystery play1808
R. Misyn tr. R. Rolle Fire of Love 5 Noȝt standyng in ydilnes, nor to plays no wondyrs rynnynge.
a. Evil or shameful action; evil; plural evil or horrible deeds. Obsolete.
ΘΚΠ
the mind > goodness and badness > badness or evil > evil action > [noun]
wonder1154
wickednessa1300
perpetrationc1429
maleficence1533
wicked-doing1535
malefaction1604
perpetrating1615
malefacture1635
society > morality > moral evil > wrong conduct > evildoing or wrongdoing > [noun]
sinc825
naughteOE
unnuteOE
sinningc1000
unrightOE
un-i-selthlOE
wonder1154
misguiltc1200
misdoinga1225
teeninga1225
miss?c1225
crimec1250
misdeed?c1250
wickednessa1300
mischiefa1387
evil-doing1398
mistakinga1400
perpetrationc1429
wrongingc1449
maledictionc1475
maleficence1533
wicked-doing1535
foul play1546
misdealing1571
flagition1598
delinquency1603
malefaction1604
meschancy1609
malefacture1635
misacting1651
guilt1726
flagitiosity1727
malpractice1739
malfeasance1856
peccation1861
miscreance1972
1154 Anglo-Saxon Chron. (Laud) ann. 1137 I ne can ne i ne mai tellen alle þe wunder ne alle þe pines ðæt hi diden wrecce men on þis land.
c1200 Vices & Virtues 15 Ic ne mai rimen..alle ðo sennes,..ne alle ðo wundren ðe ich, wrecche senfulle, habbe idon.
?c1225 (?a1200) Ancrene Riwle (Cleo. C.vi) (1972) 58 Monie weneð wel todon þet deð alto wunder [a1250 Nero cweade].
a1300 K. Horn 1440 (Cott.) Fykenild me haþ gon vnder Ant do rymenild sum wonder.
a1325 (c1250) Gen. & Exod. (1968) 69 Pride made angel deuel dwale, Ðat made..euerilc wunder, and euerilc wo.
a1325 (c1250) Gen. & Exod. (1968) l. 3588 Ne spared he nogt On of hem ðat haued ðis wunder wrogt.
ΘΚΠ
the world > existence and causation > creation > destruction > [noun]
end832
bale-sithea1000
wrakea1275
wonderc1275
destroyingc1300
destruction1340
contritionc1384
stroying1396
undoing1398
tininga1400
ruinc1425
fatec1430
fordoingc1450
perishing?1523
shipwreck1526
pernicion?1530
ruining1562
ruinating1587
defeasance1590
defeature1592
breakneck1598
ruination1599
defeat1600
doom1609
planet-striking1611
mismaking1615
rasurea1616
destructa1638
perition1640
interemption1656
smashing1821
degrowth1876
uncreation1884
creative destruction1927
c1275 (?a1200) Laȝamon Brut (Calig.) (1963) l. 6283 Heo sloȝen þer muchel wunder [c1300 Otho wonder] twa & fifti hundred.
c1275 (?a1200) Laȝamon Brut (Calig.) (1963) l. 3917 Þa scipen wenden to wundre [c1300 Otho wondre] oðer half hundred.
c1400 (?c1390) Sir Gawain & Green Knight (1940) l. 16 Bretayn..Where werre & wrake & wonder Bi syþeȝ hatȝ wont þer-inne.
ΘΚΠ
the mind > emotion > suffering > sorrow or grief > [noun] > great sorrow or grief
moodc1300
wonder1303
pregravation1623
1303 R. Mannyng Handlyng Synne 5262 Yn þe put..He sagh so moche sorowe and wundyr, Of fendes fele þat þere wore.
?1561 Syr Tryamoure (new ed.) sig. A.iiii Of this..I haue gret wonder For sorowe my herte wyll breke asonder.
a1600 Northumberland Betrayed by Douglas ii, in F. J. Child Eng. & Sc. Pop. Ballads (1889) III. vi. 411 As woe and wonder be them amonge!
6. Phraseological uses.† a. to wonder: dreadfully, horribly, terribly. (Cf. sense 5) Obsolete.† c. to think wonder [think v.1] (const. dative of person): to seem a matter of astonishment (to); hence, of the person, to be astonished, to marvel, wonder. So, rarely, to think it wonder, [think v.2] to be amazed at it. Obsolete.
ΘΚΠ
the mind > emotion > fear > quality of inspiring fear > quality of terribleness > terrible [phrase] > terribly or horribly
to wonderc1000
c1000 Ælfric Lives Saints xxiii. 654 Ealle men hine fram stowe to stowe brudon and to wundre tawedon.
c1230 Hali Meid. (1922) 23 Leccherie seið ‘schome þe menske of þi meidenhad,’ & tukeð hire to wundre [v.r. al to wundre].
a1300 Cursor Mundi 22606 Heuen he sal se part in sundre, And he sal here it cri to wonder.
b. to a wonder, in early use also †to wonder [after French à merveille] , marvellously, wonderfully, marvellously well. Obsolete or archaic.
ΘΚΠ
the mind > mental capacity > expectation > feeling of wonder, astonishment > quality of inspiring wonder > [adverb]
wonderlyc897
sellya1000
wonderc1175
wonderfullya1300
marvellouslya1382
marvellousa1400
marvelly?a1400
wonderful14..
wonderslyc1489
to marvelc1500
wondersc1528
wondrously1535
prodigiously1541
wondrous1557
admirably1570
admiredly1598
to a miracle?1614
marls1615
amazingly1650
miridically1652
mirificously1657
surprisingly1661
to wonder1661
astonishingly1668
prodigious1694
strikingly1752
amazing1760
à merveille1762
astoundingly1826
mirifically1873
breathtakingly1887
eye-poppingly1959
mind-bogglingly1973
staggeringly1976
mind-blowingly1977
1661 J. Glanvill Vanity of Dogmatizing 175 The unparallel'd Des-Cartes hath unridled their dark Physiology, and to wonder solv'd their Motions.
a1684 J. Evelyn Diary anno 1658 (1955) III. 208 Sentences in Lat: & Greeke which on occasion he would produce even to wonder.
1698 J. Crowne Caligula iv. 31 Y'are to a wonder fair.
1751 tr. Female Foundling II. 11 He is better to a Wonder.
1792 W. Cowper Let. 11 June (1984) IV. 110 His motives were not, nor could be, of the amorous kind, for she was ugly to a wonder.
1828 E. Bulwer-Lytton Pelham I. xxxi. 279 I have flattered him to a wonder!
1843 W. M. Thackeray Mr. & Mrs. Berry ii He ties his white neckcloth to a wonder.
ΘΚΠ
the mind > mental capacity > expectation > feeling of wonder, astonishment > wonder, be astonished [phrase]
to think wonder971
I have selcoutha1250
marvela1393
to have wondera1400
to have marvela1500
to give oneself wonderc1500
bewondereda1586
to think it wondera1586
estrange1658
to think (it) much1669
flabberdegasky1822
the mind boggles1899
971 Blickl. Hom. 33 Þonne ne þincþ us þæt nan wundor.
c1000 Ælfric Homilies II. 484 Wundor me ðincð eower ðingræden.
c1175 Ormulum (Burchfield transcript) l. 218 All þe follc..þuhhte mikell wunnderr. Forr whi þe preost swa lannge wass..att godess allterr.
?c1225 (?a1200) Ancrene Riwle (Cleo. C.vi) (1972) 8 Ȝef him þuncheð wunder & sullich of swich ondswere.
1340 R. Rolle Pricke of Conscience 1786 Of þe dede here men may thynk wonder, For alle thyng it brestes in sonder.
1362 W. Langland Piers Plowman A. iii. 176 Whi þou wraþþest þe now wonder me þinkeþ.
a1586 A. Montgomerie Misc. Poems xl. 54 Quhat Natur works, we may not think it wonder.
d. it (or †that) is (was, were, etc.) no wonder: it is (etc.) not surprising; usually with dependent that- or if-clause. Similarly, it is †great, little, small wonder, it is very, not very surprising; it is (a) wonder, wonder it is, it is wonderful. †a wonder is to speak, it is surprising to tell.. †make it no wonder, do not be surprised at it.
ΘΚΠ
the mind > mental capacity > expectation > lack of surprise [phrase]
it is great, little, small wonderOE
no selcoutha1250
no ferlyc1275
(and) no wonder!1390
no wonder that, if, or though1390
what ferlya1605
what wonder if1667
I shouldn't wonder1836
small wonder that1913
wouldn't you (just) know?1919
the mind > mental capacity > expectation > surprise, unexpectedness > expressing surprise [phrase]
it (or that) is (was, were, etc.) no wonder1362
it is (a) wondera1400
the wonder is‥1608
you could (or might) have knocked me (etc.) down with a feather1740
think1746
for a wonder1782
to hush one's mouth1903
you'd be surprised1926
OE Crist III 1015 Forþon nis ænig wundor hu him woruldmonna seo unclæne gecynd, cearum sorgende, hearde ondrede.
c1175 Lamb. Hom. 23 Hit nis nan wunder þah mon suneȝie oðer hwile unwaldes, ah hit is muchele mare wunder ȝif he nule nefre swiken.
c1175 Ormulum (Burchfield transcript) l. 9327 & tatt nass wunnderr þwerrt ut nan Þatt he wass wis o lare.
1297 R. Gloucester's Chron. (Rolls) 378 & lute wonder it was Þat strange men in is owe lond dude a such trespas.
c1330 (?a1300) Sir Tristrem (1886) l. 2215 Sore him greued his vene, As it no wonder nes.
1362 W. Langland Piers Plowman A. v. 102 Ȝif schrift schulde hit þenne swopen out, a gret wonder hit were.
1390 J. Gower Confessio Amantis III. 382 Though god his grace caste aweie No wondir is.
a1400 (a1325) Cursor Mundi (Gött.) l. 746 (MED) Wonþer was hu he diþer [read þider] wan.
a1400–50 Wars Alex. 811 Þare slike wirschip he wan ware wonder to tell.
c1400 Brut i. 1 Þere þey lyved in ioy and merthe y-now, that it was wonder to wete.
a1529 J. Skelton Magnyfycence (?1530) sig. Aii And it is wonder that your wylde insolence Can be content with measure presence.
?c1550 tr. P. Vergil Three Bks. Eng. Hist. (1844) 50 He went.. to the duke of Bedforde, whose arrivall, a wonder is to speake, how much it encouraged his owne frendes.
c1560 A. Scott Poems (S.T.S.) ii. 167 For he affeird, it wes na winder, His cursour suld him cast.
1579 W. Fulke Heskins Parl. Repealed in D. Heskins Ouerthrowne 168 It was a woonder, howe the corporall nature passed through the impenetrable body.
1600 E. Blount tr. G. F. di Conestaggio Hist. Uniting Portugall to Castill 268 It was therefore no woonder, if without the kings consent..he attempted many things.
a1616 W. Shakespeare Taming of Shrew (1623) iii. iii. 64 I must away to day before night come, Make it no wonder . View more context for this quotation
1651 T. Hobbes Leviathan iii. xxxv. 219 It were a wonder there is no greater notice taken of it.
1673 Vinegar & Mustard (1873) 19 That's a wonder you have none of your trollops with you.
1707 E. Ward Wooden World Dissected 100 If he has a Reversion clear of Incumberances, it's a Wonder.
1741 W. Warburton Divine Legation Moses II. vi. vi. 639 It is no Wonder his Arguments should look asquint.
1749 H. Fielding Tom Jones I. iii. iv. 174 ‘No Man is wise at all Hours’; it is therefore no Wonder that a Boy is not so. View more context for this quotation
1860 W. M. Thackeray Lovel ii You consume more tea than all my family,..and as much sugar and butter—well, it's no wonder you are bilious!
e. Without verb, esp. in no wonder that, if, or though; similarly, small wonder that (etc.), what wonder if..? Also interjectionally in (and) no wonder!, and what wonder! Cf. Latin nimirum, Greek οὐ θαῦμα, θαῦμα οὐδέν.
ΘΚΠ
the mind > mental capacity > expectation > lack of surprise [phrase]
it is great, little, small wonderOE
no selcoutha1250
no ferlyc1275
(and) no wonder!1390
no wonder that, if, or though1390
what ferlya1605
what wonder if1667
I shouldn't wonder1836
small wonder that1913
wouldn't you (just) know?1919
1390 J. Gower Confessio Amantis I. 100 No wonder thogh he siketh ofte.
a1400 Pistill of Susan 201 And heo wepte for wo, no wonder, I wene.
c1400 T. Chestre Launfal 204 No wonther dough me smerte.
c1440 Promptorium Parvulorum 360/1 Nowundyr, (P. nowonder), nimirum.
1513 G. Douglas tr. Virgil Æneid iii. viii. 103 Na wondir, this is the selcouth Caribdis.
a1616 W. Shakespeare Cymbeline (1623) iii. vi. 11 Will poore Folkes lye..? Yes; no wonder, When Rich-ones scarse tell true. View more context for this quotation
1667 J. Milton Paradise Lost iii. 606 What wonder then if fields and regions here Breathe forth Elixir pure. View more context for this quotation
1795–6 W. Wordsworth Borderers ii. 812 Her. I was alarmed. Mar. No wonder; this is a place That well may put some fears into your heart.
1853 C. Dickens Bleak House iv. 31 Pa's miserable, and no wonder!
1862 H. Kingsley Ravenshoe xviii She has given her honest little heart away—and what wonder!
1891 F. W. Farrar Darkness & Dawn II. xxxix. 54 No wonder Nero loves her better than that pale sad lady who sits among the six Vestals.
1913 H. L. Jackson Eschatol. Jesus 6 If ‘the great authorities differ’ small wonder that weaker minds are in doubt.
f. the wonder is.., what is surprising is...
ΘΚΠ
the mind > mental capacity > expectation > surprise, unexpectedness > expressing surprise [phrase]
it (or that) is (was, were, etc.) no wonder1362
it is (a) wondera1400
the wonder is‥1608
you could (or might) have knocked me (etc.) down with a feather1740
think1746
for a wonder1782
to hush one's mouth1903
you'd be surprised1926
1608 W. Shakespeare King Lear xxiv. 311 Edg. O he is gone indeed. Kent. The wonder is, he hath endured so long. View more context for this quotation
1842 C. Dickens Amer. Notes II. iii. 74 The wonder is, not that there should be so many fatal accidents, but that any journey should be safely made.
1856 C. M. Yonge Daisy Chain i. iv The only wonder was, that it had not happened sooner.
g. for a wonder: as an instance of a surprising fact; strange to say.
ΘΚΠ
the mind > mental capacity > expectation > surprise, unexpectedness > expressing surprise [phrase]
it (or that) is (was, were, etc.) no wonder1362
it is (a) wondera1400
the wonder is‥1608
you could (or might) have knocked me (etc.) down with a feather1740
think1746
for a wonder1782
to hush one's mouth1903
you'd be surprised1926
1782 Boswell Jrnl. 16 July in Boswell, Laird of Auchinleck (1977) 456 While she was out, my father and Lady Auchinleck called, for a wonder.
1811 Princess Charlotte Let. 13 Nov. (1949) 12 Soon for a wonder I plucked up courage & went in.
1856 C. Reade It is never too Late II. xiv. 156 For a wonder he was not sea-sick.
1881 G. Saintsbury Dryden vii. 145 For a wonder Dryden resists..his unhappy tendency to exaggerate the coarseness of his subjects.
h. in the name of wonder: used with an interrogative word to give emphasis to a question; also colloquial or dialect shortened to the wonder.
ΘΚΠ
the mind > attention and judgement > importance > [phrase] > rendering outstanding
in (or to) soothc1300
by my, your, etc.(good) sootha1400
in good or very sooth1577
Heaven knowsa1628
in the name of wonder1629
yes, sir1799
in no uncertain terms1958
1629 P. Massinger Roman Actor iv. ii. sig. I In the name of wonder What's Cæsars purpose?
1716 J. Addison Freeholder No. 9. ⁋12 What in the name of wonder do you mean?
1862 Mrs. H. Wood Mrs. Halliburton's Troubles II. viii. 86 How the wonder do you manage it?
1889 R. Bridges Feast of Bacchus iii. 814 Who in the name of wonder are these queer foreigners?
i. wonders will never cease: that is indeed surprising; now frequently ironic.
ΘΚΠ
the mind > mental capacity > expectation > surprise, unexpectedness > exclamation of surprise [interjection] > ironical
wonders will never cease1828
surprise1953
Mary1968
1828 T. Creevey Let. 11 Feb. in Creevey's Life & Times (1934) xii. 258 Off he went with, ‘Well, Creevey, wonders will never cease!’ I met Lord Bathurst at the Duke of Buccleuch's [etc.].
1837 C. Dickens Pickwick Papers xliv. 489 Vonders vill never cease... I'm wery much mistaken if that 'ere Jingle worn't a doin' somethin' in the vater-cart vay!
1902 J. Conrad Typhoon xxiv. 191 ‘Solomon says wonders will never cease,’ cried Mrs. Rout, joyously.
1962 M. Summerton Nightingale at Noon (1963) viii. 105 I offered: I'll help you...’ She..gave me a cheeky grin. ‘Hear that! Wonders will never cease!’
1974 A. Price Other Paths to Glory i. vii. 88 Wonders will never cease... Early Tudor—practically untouched.
II. The feeling or emotion aroused by something wondrous, and related uses.
7. † b. to have wonder, to be greatly surprised; to marvel: = wonder v. 1, 2 Obsolete.† c. Profound admiration. Obsolete.
a. The emotion excited by the perception of something novel and unexpected, or inexplicable; astonishment mingled with perplexity or bewildered curiosity. Also, the state of mind in which this emotion exists; †an instance of this, a fit of wonderment.
ΘΚΠ
the mind > mental capacity > expectation > feeling of wonder, astonishment > [noun] > state of wonder
wonderc1290
ecstasyc1384
mazednessc1395
study?1397
mazec1425
wonderfulness1532
wonderment1535
gape1712
astoundment1810
marvelment1823
jouissance1968
c1290 St. Dunstan 8 in S. Eng. Leg. 19 Þat folk stod al in gret wonder.
c1384 Bible (Wycliffite, E.V.) (Douce 369(2)) (1850) Luke v. 26 And greet wondir took alle men, and thei magnyfieden God.
c1450 Mirk's Festial 18 When Thomas had soo ydo, anon he criet for wondyr and for fere.
a1566 T. Hoby tr. B. Castiglione Courtyer (1577) ii. sig. K.viiv Then he turning about, and beholding him..with a wonder [It. con marauiglia] stayed a while wythout any word.
1600 W. Shakespeare Henry V ii. iv. 135 Youle finde a difference As we his subiects haue in wonder found.
1611 Bible (King James) Acts iii. 10 They were filled with wonder and amazement at that which had happened vnto him. View more context for this quotation
1659 O. Walker Περιαμμα Ἐπιδήμιον 31 Galen was husht into a wonder by some anatomicall observations.
1667 J. Milton Paradise Lost iii. 542 Satan..Looks down with wonder at the sudden view Of all this World at once. View more context for this quotation
1690 J. Evelyn Diary (1955) V. 39 Lord Godolphin (now resuming the Commission of the Treasury againe to all his friends wonder).
1770 O. Goldsmith Deserted Village 215 And still they gazed, and still the wonder grew, That one small head could carry all he knew.
a1771 T. Gray tr. T. Tasso in Wks. (1814) II. 91 Fix'd in wonder stood the warlike pair.
1814 H. F. Cary tr. Dante Vision III. xxxi. 31 The grim brood..Stood in mute wonder 'mid the works of Rome.
1848 W. M. Thackeray Vanity Fair lxv. 594 Max and Fritz were at the door listening with wonder to Mrs. Becky's sobs and cries.
1870 J. R. Lowell Among my Bks. 1st Ser. 143 The faculty of wonder is not defunct, but is only getting more and more emancipated from the unnatural service of terror.
ΘΚΠ
the mind > mental capacity > expectation > feeling of wonder, astonishment > wonder, be astonished [phrase]
to think wonder971
I have selcoutha1250
marvela1393
to have wondera1400
to have marvela1500
to give oneself wonderc1500
bewondereda1586
to think it wondera1586
estrange1658
to think (it) much1669
flabberdegasky1822
the mind boggles1899
the mind > mental capacity > expectation > surprise, unexpectedness > happen or move unexpectedly [verb (intransitive)] > feel surprised
to think wonder (also ferly)lOE
to have wondera1400
admirec1429
startle1562
to think (it) strange of (or concerning)1585
to come short?1611
strange1639
to think (it) much1669
admirize1702
to go (all) hot and cold1845
to take to1862
surprise1943
not to know (or to wonder) what hit one1961
a1400 (a1325) Cursor Mundi (Vesp.) l. 17288 + 171 It was our lordez ordinans, for-þi no wonder has.
1470–85 T. Malory Morte d'Arthur i. xiv. 55 Thenne syre Arthur dyd so merueillously in armes that all men had wondyr.
c1480 (a1400) St. Matthew 121 in W. M. Metcalfe Legends Saints Sc. Dial. (1896) I. 193 All þat harde hyme, ȝald or ȝynge, had wondyre þat sik grace suld be In ony manne.
1489 (a1380) J. Barbour Bruce (Adv.) iii. 485 And quhen he hard sa blaw & cry, He had wonder quhat it mycht be.
1622 (?a1513) W. Dunbar Poems (Reidpeth) (1998) I. 241 Thay saw that I not glaider wax of cheir, And thairof had thai winder.
ΘΚΠ
the mind > attention and judgement > esteem > admiration > [noun]
marvelc1330
admiration1481
wondera1586
admire1591
admiring1594
admirance1596
a1586 Sir P. Sidney Apol. Poetrie (1595) sig. B1v To so vnbeleeued a poynt hee proceeded, as that no earthly thing bred such wonder to a Prince, as to be a good horseman.
1598 W. Shakespeare Love's Labour's Lost iv. ii. 114 All ignorant that soule, that sees thee without wonder . View more context for this quotation
1607 Bp. J. Hall Holy Observ. 32 No man hath been so exquisite, but some haue detracted from him, euen in those qualityes which haue seemed most worthy of wonder to others.
a1616 W. Shakespeare Macbeth (1623) i. iii. 90 His Wonders and his Prayses doe contend, Which should be thine, or his. View more context for this quotation
8. [ < wonder v. 2] A state of wondering (whether, etc.). rare.
ΘΚΠ
the mind > attention and judgement > [noun]
busyhead1340
inquisitiveness1583
curiosity1613
interest1771
femalism1779
interestedness1788
curiousness1794
explorativeness1841
wondering1847
wonder1853
1853 E. C. Gaskell Ruth II. vi. 140 Many profound secrets..most of which related to their wonders if Jemima and Mr. Farquhar would ever be married.
1889 ‘J. S. Winter’ Mrs. Bob (1891) iv. 45 Haunted by..a wonder whether he would find his way to St. Eve's.
Compounds
C1. Simple attributive (sometimes passing into adjective).
a. = ‘that is a wonder, marvel, or prodigy’, as wonder-avenue, wonder-beauty, wonder boy, wonder-child (after German wunderkind), wonder-dance, wonder drug, wonder-flower, wonder-gleam, wonder goal, wonder-horse, wonder-look, wonder-night, wonder-sight (after German wundergesicht), wonder-treasure, wonder-woman.
ΚΠ
1838 H. W. Longfellow Jrnl. 26 Mar. in S. Longfellow Life H. W. Longfellow (1891) I. xix. 293 The great wonder-flowers bloom but once in a lifetime; as marriage and death.
1845 J. C. Mangan Anthologia Germanica I. 185 But, lo! a wonder-sight!—Ere long Rose, blooming,..The fairest lily ever seen.
1866 W. D. Howells Venetian Life viii. 120 That wonder-avenue of palaces [the Grand Canal].
1890 ‘R. Boldrewood’ Miner's Right III. xli. 238 You..discover so many wonder-treasures..that you will never consent to return.
1890 ‘R. Boldrewood’ Colonial Reformer xviii A Pharos, a wonder-sign, an exemplar throughout all the civilised world.
1896 Catholic Mag. May 258 Hermann Cohen, by reason of his marvellous piano-playing, was looked upon as a ‘wonder-child’.
1921 D. H. Lawrence Sea & Sardinia v. 210 Real fresh wonder-beauty all around.
1922 D. H. Lawrence Aaron's Rod (N.Y. ed.) xviii. 269 The glimmer of the open flower, the wonder~look, still lasted.
1924 A. J. Small Frozen Gold 211 By the time the aurora ceased its wonder dances.
1927 E. O'Neill Marco Millions iii. i. 167 Worth while your waiting, eh?.. Yes, my wonder boy!
1927 A. Conan Doyle Case-bk. Sherlock Holmes 15 A wonder-woman in every way.
1929 R. Bridges Test. Beauty iv. 188 The shifting hues that sanctify the silent dawn with wonder-gleams.
1938 Encycl. Brit. Bk. of Year 38/2 The one signed work in the series..was the wonder-child of the project.
1939 Time 14 Aug. 50/2 Sulfanilamide, the ‘wonder drug’, introduced into the U.S. in 1936, is credited with remarkable cures.
1939 J. Joyce Finnegans Wake 395 You know her, our angel being, one of romance's fadeless wonderwomen.
1939 New Yorker 13 May 80/2 He may not be quite the wonder horse the flushed and eager second-guessers insist he is.
1948 Sun (Baltimore) 9 Jan. 5/1 Recently publicized ‘wonder drugs’ include..subtilin.
1958 P. Scott Mark of Warrior i. 82 Old Ramsay's something of a wonder boy. He'll be top cadet of the course.
1975 Daily Tel. 18 June 2/8 Experts..began work on the vaccines following the failure of the post-war ‘wonder drugs’ such as sulphonamides and penicillin to wipe out these two diseases.
1976 West Lancs. Evening Gaz. 15 Dec. i. 4/7 He scored a superb hat trick with a wonder goal to round it off.
1976 Liverpool Echo 23 Nov. 7/1 Southport's golden sands, world famous as the training track of wonderhorse Red Rum.
1980 ‘R. B. Dominic’ Attending Physician xiv. 117 Senator Gerald Ewell was a Democrat... ‘What's Wonder Boy done this time?’ demanded Tony.
1980 I. Hunter Malcolm Muggeridge iv. 59 Various bizarre proposals to sort out and rearrange our genes so that everyone will become superman and wonderwoman.
1985 Times 2 Jan. 15/2 The word from the market is that a replacement ‘wonder drug’ is now in clinical trials.
b. = ‘of wonder or wonders’, as wonder-book, wonder-city, wonder-life, wonder-literature, wonder song, wonder-story, wonder-tale, wonder-world (cf. German wunderwelt).
ΚΠ
1851 Hawthorne (title) A Wonder-Book for Girls and Boys, (including ‘Tanglewood Tales’).
1851 H. Melville Moby-Dick i. 7 The great flood-gates of the wonder-world swung open.
1854 Zoologist 12 4487 A kind of wonder-story in zoology.
1865 E. B. Tylor Res. Early Hist. Mankind vi. 144 The native wonder-tales must only be told in the winter.
1881 E. B. Tylor Anthropol. 380 It is known to be only a version of the..wonder-tale told by Herodotus.
1896 R. Kipling Seven Seas 84 The everlasting Wonder Song of Youth!
1896 Tablet 15 Feb. 257 That Asiatic wonder-world, the Indian Empire.
1896 J. Davidson Fleet St. Eclogues 2nd Ser. 78 To wonder-worlds of old romance Our aching thoughts for solace run.
1905 Roosevelt Outdoor Pastimes xi. 339 To read and enjoy the wonder-book of nature.
1907 Westm. Gaz. 14 Sept. 6/2 All our wonder-literature.
1907 Westm. Gaz. 20 Sept. 2/1 Everything in that wonder-city [sc. Fez] was so like a half-remembered dream.
1924 A. J. Small Frozen Gold 223 All the wonder-songs of the South.
1929 R. Bridges Test. Beauty iii. 105 With what other numberless wonder-lives of the Saints they wrote.
c. = ‘miraculous, magic, magical’, as wonder-offspring, wonder-staff (cf. German wunderstab magic wand), wonder-stroke.
ΚΠ
1846 R. C. Trench Notes Miracles Introd. iv. 46 By a mighty wonder-stroke of grace the polarity in the man is shifted.
1846 R. C. Trench Notes Miracles xxix. 421 (note) Sometimes [in early Christian art] he [sc. Jesus] is touching with his wonder-staff the head of Lazarus.
1907 Notes & Queries 10th Ser. VIII. 208/2 The belief in such wonder-offspring was once as common in Europe.
C2.
a. Objective.
(a)
wonder-bearing adj.
wonder-exciting adj.
wonder-hiding adj.
ΚΠ
1834 T. Carlyle Sartor Resartus iii. viii. 94/2 The deceptions, and wonder-hiding stupefactions, which Space practises on us.
wonder-loving adj.
ΚΠ
1851 Zoologist 9 3167 The wonder-loving and credulous Northmen.
wonder-promising adj.
ΚΠ
1817 S. T. Coleridge Biogr. Lit. (Bohn) viii. 64 The wonder-promising Matter, that was to perform all these marvels.
wonder-raising adj.
ΚΠ
1813 S. T. Coleridge Remorse Epil. 28 Saintly hermits' wonder-raising acts.
wonder-seeking adj.
ΚΠ
1855Wonder-seeking [see wonder-fed adj. at Compounds 2a(d)].
wonder-stirring adj.
ΚΠ
1799 H. Gurney Cupid & Psyche 33 He'll tell the wonder-stirring tales.
wonder-writing adj.
ΚΠ
1603 N. Deeble in J. Davies Microcosmos sig. Oo3 His wonder-writing Hand.
(b) † wonders-doing n. Obsolete
ΚΠ
1552 R. Huloet Abcedarium Anglico Latinum Wonders doynge, mirificus.
(c)
wonder-hider n.
wonder-seeker n.
ΚΠ
1599 T. Moffett Silkewormes 53 Then list a while, you wonder-seekers great.
1856 J. A. Froude Hist. Eng. I. iv. 296 The phenomena known to modern wonder-seekers as those of somnambulism or clairvoyance.
wonder-worth adj.
ΚΠ
1864 R. Browning Abt Vogler in Dramatis Personæ 44 Had I painted the whole, Why, there it had stood, to see, nor the process so wonder-worth.
wonder-worthy adj.
ΚΠ
1622 Middleton Triumphs Honor & Vertue sig. B3v Which is not the least wonder worthy note.
1905 G. Blount Rustic Renaissance i. 10 [This] is in itself a wonder-worthy paradox.
(d) † wonder-strucken adj. Obsolete
wonder-dumb adj.
ΚΠ
1898 T. Hardy Wessex Poems 167 Shy birds stood Watching us, wonder-dumb.
wonder-fed adj.
ΚΠ
1855 H. H. Milman Hist. Lat. Christianity VI. xiv. ii. 417 This wonder-fed and wonder-seeking worship.
wonder-rapt adj.
ΚΠ
1791 W. Cowper tr. Homer Odyssey in Iliad & Odyssey II. vi. 199 Wonder-rapt I gaze.
wonder-ridden adj.
ΚΠ
1916 D. H. Lawrence Amores 76 I see each shadow start with recognition, and I Am wonder-ridden.
wonder-smit adj.
ΚΠ
a1618 J. Sylvester Iob Triumphant in tr. G. de S. Du Bartas Diuine Weekes & Wks. (1621) 925 Therefore, before Him, am I wonder-smit.
wonder-stricken adj.
ΚΠ
1817 P. B. Shelley Laon & Cythna v. xliii. 114 The morning's golden mist, Which now the wonder-stricken breezes kist With their cold lips, fled.
1855 R. C. Singleton tr. Virgil Eclogues viii, in tr. Virgil Wks. I. 51 At whose lay wonder-stricken were the pards.
wonder-struck adj.
ΚΠ
1605 J. Sylvester tr. G. de S. Du Bartas Deuine Weekes & Wks. ii. ii. 407 Ashamed, wonder-strooke.
1656 A. Cowley Davideis iv. 140 in Poems If wonder strook I at your words appear, My wonder yet is Innocent of Fear.
1796 F. Burney Camilla I. ii. xiii. 361 Indiana seemed wonder-struck, without knowing why.
1803 T. R. Malthus Ess. Princ. Population (new ed.) ii. xi. 346 Great and astonishing as this difference is, we ought not to be so wonder-struck at it.
ΚΠ
1628 W. Mure Doomesday 562 Wonder-strucken wights.
wonder-wide adj.
ΚΠ
1922 J. Joyce Ulysses ii. xv. [Circe] 507 Milly Bloom..calls, her young eyes wonderwide.
wonder-wounded adj.
ΚΠ
1604 W. Shakespeare Hamlet v. i. 253 Like wonder wounded hearers. View more context for this quotation
(e)
wonder-beaming adj.
ΚΠ
1799 T. Campbell Pleasures of Hope & Other Poems i. 130 Wilt thou, with him [sc. Newton],..watch the shrine with wonder-beaming eye?
wonder-striking adj.
ΚΠ
1642 J. Vicars God in Mount 5 The memorable and wonder-striking Parliamentary mercies.
wonder-teeming adj.
wonder-waiting adj.
ΚΠ
1798 R. Southey Battle of Blenheim v With wonder-waiting eyes.
(f) † wonder-rap v. [rap v.3] Obsolete
ΚΠ
1612 J. Davies Muses Sacrifice in Wks. (Grosart) II. 27/2 O sight of force to wonder-rap all Eyes!
wonder-strike v.
ΚΠ
1856 N. Hawthorne Jrnl. 10 May in Eng. Notebks. (1997) II. iv. 30 The..mysterious plan, which perplexes and wonderstrikes me in most Cathedrals.
b. adverbial, = ‘wonderfully’. (After German wundergross, wunderschön, etc.; cf. wonder adv.) wonder-fine.
ΚΠ
1872 J. Payne Songs Life & Death 214 Oh, wonder-lovely maidens were the seven!
1903 Westm. Gaz. 14 Feb. 2/1 Oh, how wonder-beautiful!
1904 Westm. Gaz. 12 Feb. 2/3 Delicate wonder-white crystals.
1929 R. Bridges Test. Beauty i. 29 Not to these look we with grateful pleasur or satisfaction of soul, wonder-fine tho' they be.
C3. † wonder-master n. Obsolete a magician.† wonder-maze v. Obsolete (intransitive and transitive) to be amazed, or to amaze, with wonder.
wonder-bag n. an amulet; cf. obeah n. 2.
ΘΚΠ
the world > the supernatural > the occult > sorcery, witchcraft, or magic > non-European magic (miscellaneous) > [noun] > amulet
fetish1613
gris-gris1696
obeah1749
wonder-bag1793
saphie1799
churinga1899
1793 ‘P. Pindar’ Poet. Epist. to Pope 19 Quako..full of Negro faith in conjuration, Loaded his jackass deep with wonder-bags Of monkeys teeth, glass, horse-hair, and red rags.
wonder-horn n. (a) a cornucopia of marvels; (b) a magical horn.
ΘΚΠ
the world > the supernatural > the occult > sorcery, witchcraft, or magic > [noun] > magical object > other types of
slop1303
wonder-horn1864
pixie dust1951
the mind > mental capacity > expectation > feeling of wonder, astonishment > quality of inspiring wonder > [noun] > a marvel, object of wonder > cornucopia of
wonder-horn1864
society > leisure > the arts > music > musical instrument > wind instrument > horn > [noun] > other horns
earth horn?a1400
oliphantc1400
ruetc1400
buck-hornc1550
stock-horn1597
bell-horna1640
sea-cornet1653
dudeen?1790
carnyx1810
shofar1833
wonder-horn1864
handhorn1871
post-horn1881
1864 J. R. Lowell Fireside Trav. 178 Their world was a huge wonder-horn.
1906 Edinb. Rev. Jan. 231 Was it that the wonder-horn was still echoing from the far-off, summoning the man..to the soul-roads?
wonder-man n. a wonder-worker; also in weakened sense, a man whose achievements are admired.
ΘΚΠ
the mind > attention and judgement > esteem > admiration > [noun] > admired person
wonder-man1883
bonzer1897
man1952
badman1954
motherfucker1958
motor scooter1960
the world > the supernatural > the occult > sorcery, witchcraft, or magic > sorcerer or magician > [noun] > that works or performs wonders or miracles
miraclera1425
miracle-worker1561
miracle-monger1584
mirabilist1599
wonder-worker1599
wonder-monger1612
wonderer1647
thaumaturge1715
thaumaturgus1730
thaumaturgist1829
wonder-man1883
miracle man1914
1883 J. S. Stallybrass tr. J. Grimm Teutonic Mythol. III. 1232 He was the greatest magician or wonder-man of them all.
1901 Daily News 9 Feb. 6/1 Cornelius Drebbel, ‘the wonder-man of Alkmaar’.
1933 Amer. Speech 8 iii. 39/2 Wonderman. Foreign fighters are often thus described [by sports writers].
1935 P. G. Wodehouse Luck of Bodkins xv. 173 They get the idea that they are sort of wonder-men who can just look around and find talent where nobody else would suspect it.
1961 Catholic Herald 23 June 3/1 (heading) De Gaulle, hero and wonderman.
1962 A. Sampson Anat. Brit. xxvii. 450 In Whitehall he had the reputation of a wonderman, and had even been tipped by some as an eventual head of the Treasury.
ΘΚΠ
the world > the supernatural > the occult > sorcery, witchcraft, or magic > sorcerer or magician > [noun]
wielerOE
jugglera1100
wielea1350
magicianc1375
sorcerc1400
warlockc1400
mage?a1425
sorcerer1526
witch-mana1538
wizarda1557
wise man1562
cunning man1594
man-witch1601
wonder-master1603
sorcerist1624
talisman1646
ob1659
fascinator1677
varlet1701
Magian1716
brujo1758
mediciner1845
bomoh1851
pellar1865
trollman1865
baloi1871
magic-man1905
Wiccan1971
1603 S. Harsnett Declar. Popish Impostures 57 This foule wonder-maister is too full of wonders euer to be good.
ΘΚΠ
the mind > mental capacity > expectation > feeling of wonder, astonishment > feel wonder, be amazed [verb (intransitive)]
wonderc888
awondera1250
amarvelc1330
muse1340
marvela1382
astone1393
ferlya1400
admirec1429
stun1533
marl1601
wonder-maze1603
strange1639
admirize1702
astony1850
mirate1893
the mind > mental capacity > expectation > feeling of wonder, astonishment > quality of inspiring wonder > cause wonder, astonish [verb (transitive)]
marvela1425
esmarvel1477
amaze?1533
wondera1561
bewondera1586
to hold at gaze1594
admire1598
wonder-maze1603
astonish1611
thunderstrike1613
surprise1655
to astonish the natives1801
emmarvel1834
zap1967
mind-blow1970
gobsmack1987
1603 J. James in J. Davies Microcosmos sig. B1v Men did wonder-maze, Which wonderment, this later worke of thine (Not by detracting from it) doth deface.
?1605 J. Davies Wittes Pilgrimage sig. V4v Hee taught..Rights Ruines to repaire..with Words, that wonder-mazed men.
wonder rabbi n. in the Chasidic movement, a tsaddik n.
ΘΚΠ
society > faith > aspects of faith > holiness > saint > [noun] > non-Christian > Jewish
tsaddik1873
wonder rabbi1907
1907 I. Zangwill Ghetto Comedies 409 We Chassidim have no fear. Our wonder-rabbi has power over all the spheres.
1970 C. Kersh Aggravations of Minnie Ashe i. 11 [Her] father had been a wonder rabbi in some obscure Jewish village in Galicia—a worker of miracles.
Wonder State n. U.S. a nickname for the state of Arkansas.
ΘΚΠ
the world > the earth > named regions of earth > America > North America > [noun] > United States > specific states > Arkansas
Wonder State1923
1923 Gen. Acts Arkansas 804 Be It Resolved by the Senate of the State of Arkansas... That hereafter Arkansas shall be known and styled ‘The Wonder State’.
This entry has not yet been fully updated (first published 1928; most recently modified version published online June 2022).
† wonderadj.
Obsolete.
Wonderful, wondrous, marvellous. on or in (a) wonder wise, wonderfully (cf. Middle Low German wunderwîs(e adv.). See also wonder thing n., wonder-work n.
ΘΠ
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
the mind > mental capacity > expectation > feeling of wonder, astonishment > quality of inspiring wonder > [adjective] > full of wonders
wondera1175
a1175 Cott. Hom. 235 He cweð a wunder word to þar sawle bi þa witie ysaiam.
c1275 (?a1200) Laȝamon Brut (Calig.) (1963) l. 576 Heo dude wnder [c1300 Otho wonder] craftes.
1297 R. Gloucester's Chron. (Rolls) 6919 Þat folc com þikke amorwe to se þis wonder dede.
1297 R. Gloucester's Chron. (Rolls) 8593 Þe sixte ȝer þer com also a wel wonder cas.
c1374 G. Chaucer Troilus & Criseyde i. 419 Allas what is þis wonder maladye.
a1375 (c1350) William of Palerne (1867) l. 1873 So wonder a wilde best þat weldes no mynde.
c1382 Pol. Poems (Rolls) I. 250 This warnynges beoth wonder and feole.
1393 W. Langland Piers Plowman C. ii. 126 In wonderwyse holy wryt tellith how þei fullen.
a1400 Hymns Virg. (1895) 46 Wiyn of watir he makiþ blyue, And dooþ manye a wondir dede.
c1400 (?c1380) Pearl l. 1095 So sodanly on a wonder wyse, I was war of a prosessyoun.
c1425 Engl. Conquest Ireland (1896) 130 About that tyme, befel a wonder aduentur yn a wodde of Myth.
c1425 Seven Sag. (P.) 2643 Thou schalt telle me of that cas; Hyt hys the wounderest that ever I herde.
1470–85 T. Malory Morte d'Arthur xvii. i. 689 He passed by a Castel where was a wonder turnement.
a1529 J. Skelton Tunnyng of Elynour Rummyng in Certayne Bks. (?1545) 73 With clothes vpon her hed..Wrythen in wonder wyse, After the Sarasyns gyse.
1535 Bible (Coverdale) 2 Chron. xxxii. 24 And he prayed vnto the Lorde, which made him promes, and gaue him a wonder-token.
a1592 R. Greene Frier Bacon (1594) sig. C2 And woonder Vandermast welcome to me.
This entry has not yet been fully updated (first published 1928; most recently modified version published online December 2021).
wonderv.
/ˈwʌndə/, U.S. /ˈwəndər/ 1. intransitive. To feel or be affected with wonder; to be struck with surprise or astonishment, to marvel. Also occasionally to express wonder in speech.
a. in Old English const. genitive of the object of wonder, also with prepositions, now nearly always at, occasionally over, formerly also on, upon, of.
ΘΚΠ
the mind > mental capacity > expectation > feeling of wonder, astonishment > feel wonder, be amazed [verb (intransitive)]
wonderc888
awondera1250
amarvelc1330
muse1340
marvela1382
astone1393
ferlya1400
admirec1429
stun1533
marl1601
wonder-maze1603
strange1639
admirize1702
astony1850
mirate1893
c888 Ælfred tr. Boethius De Consol. Philos. xxxiv. §10 Hwa mæg þæt he ne wundrie swelcra gesceafta ures scyppendes?
971 Blickl. Hom. 33 Nis þæt to wundrigenne..þæt he acweald beon wolde.
971 Blickl. Hom. 153 He gehyrde heora þrowunga & he þa wundrode æfter þære gesihþe.
OE Phoenix 331 Ðonne wundriað weras ofer eorþan wlite ond wæstma.
c1000 West Saxon Gospels: Mark (Corpus Cambr.) vi. 2 Manege gehyrdon & wundrodon on his lare.
c1175 Ormulum (Burchfield transcript) l. 7633 Iosæp..& Marȝe..Wundredenn baþe off all þatt hemm. Wass cwiddedd tære off criste.
a1250 Owl & Night 228 Þu fliȝst a niȝt and noȝt a-dai, Þar-of ich wndri.
1297 R. Gloucester's Chron. (Rolls) 5353 In lepes & in coufles so moche viss hii ssolleþ hom bringe, Þat ech mon ssal wondry of so gret cacchinge.
a1325 (c1250) Gen. & Exod. (1968) l. 3716 Getenisse men ben in ebron, Quilc men mai get wundren on.
c1386 G. Chaucer Squire's Tale 217 Somme of hem wondred on the Mirour..Hou men myghte in it swiche thynges se.
a1400 (a1325) Cursor Mundi (Vesp.) l. 18774 Godmen o galilee, Apon quat thing sa wonder yee?
c1430 Syr Gener. (Roxb.) 7599 Mirabel wondred of hir woo, Whi hir ladie ferd soo.
1483 W. Caxton tr. J. de Voragine Golden Legende 125 b/1 All the peple drewe to hym and wondred on hym.
1529 T. More Dialogue Heresyes x. 16 b/2 We nothyng wonder at the ebbyng and flowyng of the see.
a1600 A. Montgomerie Misc. Poems xxiv. 16 O, wareit be my weird, For wondring on a deitie divyne.
1600 W. Shakespeare Midsummer Night's Dream iv. i. 130 I wonder of their being here together. View more context for this quotation
1667 J. Milton Paradise Lost ix. 856 Hast thou not wonderd, Adam, at my stay? View more context for this quotation
1753 S. Richardson Hist. Sir Charles Grandison IV. xxvii. 191 I wonder at you.
1780 W. Cowper Progress of Error 191 Rufillus..Wonders at Clodio's follies, in a tone As tragical, as others at his own.
1818 J. W. Croker in L. J. Jennings Croker Papers (1884) I. iv. 123 I cannot but wonder at her living here and bearding the Prince in a way so indelicate.
1844 R. W. Emerson New Eng. Reformers in Ess. 2nd Ser. The unwise..wonders at what is unusual, the wise man wonders at the usual.
1919 B. Capes Skel. Key xvii. 213 His benevolent truthfulness was a thing to wonder over.
b. with clause expressing the motive or object of wonder.
ΚΠ
c1000 West Saxon Gospels: Luke (Corpus Cambr.) i. 21 Þæt folc wæs zachariam geanbidiende, & wundrodon þæt he on þam temple læt wæs.
c1386 [see sense 1a]. c1430 [see sense 1a]. ?1553 Respublica (1952) iii. i. 21 Nowe I doe lesse woonder that lost men life to save, Ferre from lande dooe laboure againste the roring wave.
1596 J. Dalrymple tr. J. Leslie Hist. Scotl. (1888) I. 36 This causes men meruellouslie to wondir, that vndir that earth ar fund gret stokis..of wondirful akes and vthir tries.
1600 W. Shakespeare Much Ado about Nothing i. i. 110 I wonder that you will still be talking, signior Benedicke, no body markes you. View more context for this quotation
1671 J. Milton Samson Agonistes 215 I oft have heard men wonder Why thou shouldst wed Philistian women rather Then of thine own Tribe fairer. View more context for this quotation
1676 in 12th Rep. Royal Comm. Hist. MSS (1890) App. v. 33 I wonder my father would not ease himselfe from his Haddon inquietudes by staying at Belvoire.
?1710 Squire Bickerstaff Detected 5 A Third Rogue tips me by the Elbow, and wonders how I have the Conscience to sneak abroad.
1846 W. Greener Sci. Gunnery (new ed.) 133 We wonder the parties did not take a patent for the discovery.
1885 ‘Mrs. Alexander’ At Bay vii. 113 I wonder he is not more confidential with you.
c. const. to with infinitive (usually = at with gerund).
ΚΠ
1604 E. Grimeston tr. J. de Acosta Nat. & Morall Hist. Indies iii. xix. 183 When wee goe..to the Indies, wee woonder to see the land so pleasant, greene and fresh.
1711 J. Addison Spectator No. 34. ¶4 He wonder'd to hear a Man of his Sense talk after that Manner.
1798 J. Ferriar Illustr. Sterne 222 We cannot wonder to find a joint occasionally added to this part.
1840 W. M. Thackeray Pict. Rhapsody in Fraser's Mag. July 122/2 The drawing is executed in a manner so loose and slovenly that one wonders to behold it.
d. in indirect passive (now only in to be wondered at as adjective or predicative phrase).
ΚΠ
1532 T. More Confut. Barnes in Wks. (1557) 741/2 He had so monstrouslye dressed himself because he would be wondred on.
1549 M. Coverdale et al. tr. Erasmus Paraphr. Newe Test. II. Rom. xii. f. xxxv That to hymself..he seme a stoute felow and one to be wondered at.
1598 W. Shakespeare Love's Labour's Lost v. ii. 266 Are these the breede of Wits so wondered at? View more context for this quotation
a1701 H. Maundrell Journey Aleppo to Jerusalem (1703) 28 Nor is this ignorance to be much wondred at.
1825 W. Scott Talisman xi, in Tales Crusaders III. 283 It cannot be wondered at if he took such opportunities as offered.
e. Without construction. Now rare.
ΚΠ
c1275 (?a1200) Laȝamon Brut (Calig.) (1963) l. 238 Ȝif heo wlleð frescipe bi-winnen ne wndre þou nawiht þer-fore.
1297 R. Gloucester's Chron. (Rolls) 11409 A sterre..þat comete icluped is Aros..Þat ech man miȝte wondri þat þe sterre isei.
c1380 Eng. Wycliffite Serm. in Sel. Wks. II. 306 Herfore þei alle abaishiden and woundriden.
1390 J. Gower Confessio Amantis I. 185 Wherof thei merveile everychon, Bot Elda wondreth most of alle.
1533 J. Frith Bk. answeringe Mores Let. sig. Dviv They..vnderstoode not the Spirituall wordes of our Sauioure Christe, and therfore wondered and murmured.
1567 Compend. Bk. Godly Songs (1897) 100 Quhen men sall se this haistie suddand change, Than sall thay wunder.
a1616 W. Shakespeare Cymbeline (1623) i. vi. 82 Whil'st I am bound to wonder, I am bound To pitty too. View more context for this quotation
f. passive (obsolete) and reflexive (obsolete or dialect) in the same sense. Also †impersonal (me wondreth = I wonder).
ΘΚΠ
the mind > mental capacity > expectation > feeling of wonder, astonishment > feel wonder or astonishment [verb (reflexive)]
wonder?c1225
marvela1393
the mind > mental capacity > expectation > feeling of wonder, astonishment > wonder [verb (impersonal)]
wonder?c1225
awonderc1250
me marvelsc1380
?c1225 (?a1200) Ancrene Riwle (Cleo. C.vi) (1972) 277 Ne wundre ha hire nawicht ȝef ha nis marie.
a1300 Floriz & Bl. 354 Muche he wule þonki þe And of þe suþe iwundred beo.
a1330 Roland & V. 161 Me wondreþ..Þat þou comest nouȝt to do batayl.
c1330 R. Mannyng Chron. Wace (Rolls) 4295 Vs wondreþ at ȝowre nurture of pris, Þat swylke vilenie in þe now lys.
a1400–50 Wars Alex. 2856 Þai ware so woundird of þat werke.
c1430 Pilgr. Lyf Manhode (1869) i. iv. 3 Yit more j wundrede me of a thing that j seygh.
1533 W. Tyndale Souper of Lorde B vj b I wonder me, that hys scholemaister here fayled him so conynge as he maketh hym selfe therin.
c1540 (?a1400) Destr. Troy 9821 Þof þow wylne to þe wer, wonders vs noght.
g. I shouldn't wonder (colloquial): I should not be surprised (if, etc.).
ΘΚΠ
the mind > mental capacity > expectation > lack of surprise [phrase]
it is great, little, small wonderOE
no selcoutha1250
no ferlyc1275
(and) no wonder!1390
no wonder that, if, or though1390
what ferlya1605
what wonder if1667
I shouldn't wonder1836
small wonder that1913
wouldn't you (just) know?1919
1836 C. Dickens Sketches by Boz 1st Ser. II. 218 ‘Do you think you could manage to leave a letter there?’ interrogated Trott. ‘Shouldn't wonder,’ responded boots.
1871 B. Jowett tr. Plato Dialogues I. 17 I shouldn't wonder if he who said this had no notion of his own meaning.
1913 E. Wharton Custom of Country i. iii. 35 Saying..‘I wouldn't wonder’ when she thought any one was trying to astonish her.
2. Usually with clause: To ask oneself in wonderment; to feel some doubt or curiosity (how, whether, why, etc.); to be desirous to know or learn. I wonder is often placed after a question which expresses the object of curiosity or doubt; e.g. ‘How can that be, I wonder?’ = I wonder how that can be. Also I wonder!, colloquial exclamation expressing doubt, incredulity, or reserve of judgement.
ΘΚΠ
the mind > attention and judgement > feel curious about [verb (transitive)]
wonder1297
beseecha1325
marvela1393
studyc1400
mire1582
the mind > mental capacity > belief > uncertainty, doubt, hesitation > perplexity, bewilderment > be or become confused [verb (intransitive)]
wonder1297
confusec1350
maskera1375
studya1375
to annoy of?c1400
muse?c1430
marc1440
manga1450
puzzle1605
dunce1611
quandary1616
wavera1625
wilder1658
to scratch one's head1712
maffle1781
to strike up1844
turn1852
to fall over oneself1889
fuzz1930
to get the lines crossed1973
1297 R. Gloucester's Chron. (Rolls) 160 Þe stones stondeþ þere so grete..& oþere liggeþ heie aboue..Þat eche man wondry may hou hii were ferst arered.
1377 W. Langland Piers Plowman B. xix. 199 I wondred what þat was.
1390 J. Gower Confessio Amantis I. 210 Thei wondren what sche wolde mene, And riden after softe pas.
a1425 tr. Arderne's Treat. Fistula 6 Ȝif the pacient considere or wondre or aske why that he putte hym so long a tyme of curyng.
1600 W. Shakespeare Midsummer Night's Dream iii. ii. 1 I wonder if Titania be awak't. View more context for this quotation
a1616 W. Shakespeare Winter's Tale (1623) iii. iii. 69 What haue we heere? Mercy on's, a Barne?.. A boy, or a Childe I wonder ? View more context for this quotation
1651 T. Hobbes Leviathan ii. xxvi. 139 A man may wonder from whence proceed such opinions.
1681 J. Evelyn Let. 6 Dec. in S. Pepys Private Corr. (1926) I. 16 I know it has ben wondered upon what pretence I should have sought to sit at the Navy-board.
1716 J. Addison Freeholder No. 43. ⁋1 One would wonder how any Person endow'd with..ordinary..Prudence..should [etc.].
1782 W. Cowper John Gilpin 96 His horse..What thing upon his back had got Did wonder more and more.
1785 W. Cowper Task i. 469 The heart..finds no music in the song,..and wonders why.
1847 Ld. Tennyson Let. in H. Tennyson Alfred Ld. Tennyson: Mem. (1897) I. xi. 244 I wonder whether you can read this scrawl.
1853 C. Dickens Bleak House iv. 31 I still remained before the fire, wondering and wondering about Bleak House.
1858 Punch 34 2 Well, I'm sure! What next, I wonder!
1864 Mrs. H. Wood Ld. Oakburn's Daughter I. xvii ‘But what is it all to me?’ wondered the captain.
1885 R. Bridges Eros & Psyche xii. v. 146 Wondering of her wiles, and what the charge Shut in the dark obsidian pyx might be.
1898 J. K. Jerome Second Thoughts 5 She wonders would they change it, if she went back.
1922 J. S. Clouston Lunatic at large Again i. vi. 70 ‘Oh, it was entirely his own idea.’ Mr. Mason threw him a curious look. ‘I wonder!’ said he.
a. transitive. To regard with wonder; to marvel at: often implying profound admiration (cf. wonder n. 7c). Obsolete.
ΘΚΠ
the mind > mental capacity > expectation > feeling of wonder, astonishment > feel wonder or astonishment at [verb (transitive)]
amarvelc1330
marvela1382
marvela1393
admirea1500
esmarvel1502
muse1530
wonder1535
muse1567
bewonder1610
strange1641
the mind > attention and judgement > esteem > admiration > admire [verb (transitive)]
wonder1535
admire1536
to be shook on1888
1535 Bible (Coverdale) Ecclus. ix. 8 Many a man wonderinge the bewtye of a straunge woman, haue bene cast out.
1567 W. Painter Palace of Pleasure II. xxii. f. 156v That which was more to be wondred in hym.
1593 B. Barnes Parthenophil & Parthenophe 18 If she be silent euery man in place With silence wonders her.
1631 T. Heywood Fair Maid of West: 2nd Pt. i. sig. C2 Goodl. You wonder me. Mull. No, thou art dull, or fearfull, fare thee well.
1821 C. Lamb in London Mag. Dec. 605/2 I knew nothing, understood nothing, discriminated nothing. I felt all, loved all, wondered all.
b. impersonal pass. it is to be wondered = it is to be wondered at ( 1d). Now rare or Obsolete.
ΘΚΠ
the mind > mental capacity > expectation > feeling of wonder, astonishment > wonder, be astonished [phrase] > it is wonderful
it is a worldc1495
it is a world and (also a) wonder1600
mirabile dictua1634
it is to be wondered1654
strange to say, tell1697
strange enough1853
1654 Earl of Monmouth tr. G. Bentivoglio Compl. Hist. Warrs Flanders 2 You shall see them so favour'd..as it is not to be wondred if they have made so long opposition.
1771 O. Goldsmith Hist. Eng. I. 350 It is not then to be wondered, that there were many complaints.
1827 Westm. Rev. Apr. 284 If it is wondered that they abused what was in their power.
1886 J. A. Symonds Catholic Reaction in Renaissance in Italy ii. 434 It is not to be wondered that..a mournful discouragement should have descended on the age.
ΘΚΠ
the mind > mental capacity > expectation > feeling of wonder, astonishment > quality of inspiring wonder > cause wonder, astonish [verb (transitive)]
marvela1425
esmarvel1477
amaze?1533
wondera1561
bewondera1586
to hold at gaze1594
admire1598
wonder-maze1603
astonish1611
thunderstrike1613
surprise1655
to astonish the natives1801
emmarvel1834
zap1967
mind-blow1970
gobsmack1987
a1561 G. Cavendish Metrical Visions (1980) 1747 But howe they durst presume, it wonders me therfore.
a1627 W. Sclater Serm. Experimentall (1638) 28 Of all passages in the story of Job, that one thing wonders me.
1627 W. Sclater Briefe Expos. 2 Thess. (1629) 187 It wonders me to hear the desperate inference.
1788 F. Burney Diary 25 Oct. (1842) IV. 273 She alarms me sometimes for herself, at other times she has a sedateness that wonders me still more.
5. intransitive. To perform wonders.Apparently an isolated use.
ΘΚΠ
the world > the supernatural > the occult > sorcery, witchcraft, or magic > [verb (intransitive)] > work wonders or miracles
to do wondersc950
to work a wonderOE
miracle1548
wonder1785
thaumaturgize1891
1785 W. Cowper Task iv. 87 Katterfelto, with his hair on end At his own wonders, wond'ring for his bread.
This entry has not yet been fully updated (first published 1928; most recently modified version published online June 2022).
wonderadv.
/ˈwʌndə/, U.S. /ˈwəndər/ Obsolete or archaic (in later use Scottish).
Wondrously, marvellously, surprisingly; exceedingly, very.
ΘΚΠ
the mind > mental capacity > expectation > feeling of wonder, astonishment > quality of inspiring wonder > [adverb]
wonderlyc897
sellya1000
wonderc1175
wonderfullya1300
marvellouslya1382
marvellousa1400
marvelly?a1400
wonderful14..
wonderslyc1489
to marvelc1500
wondersc1528
wondrously1535
prodigiously1541
wondrous1557
admirably1570
admiredly1598
to a miracle?1614
marls1615
amazingly1650
miridically1652
mirificously1657
surprisingly1661
to wonder1661
astonishingly1668
prodigious1694
strikingly1752
amazing1760
à merveille1762
astoundingly1826
mirifically1873
breathtakingly1887
eye-poppingly1959
mind-bogglingly1973
staggeringly1976
mind-blowingly1977
the world > relative properties > quantity > greatness of quantity, amount, or degree > high or intense degree > [adverb] > extremely or exceedingly > amazingly or wonderfully
wonderlyc1000
wonderc1175
wonderfullya1300
marvellouslya1382
marvellousa1400
marvelly?a1400
wonderful14..
miraculouslya1425
wonderslyc1489
wondersc1528
wondrously1535
prodigiously1541
wondrous1557
stupendly1621
stupendiously1629
amazingly1650
stupendously1659
astonishingly1668
tremendously1684
prodigious1694
portentously1755
miraculous1766
awesomely1821
stunningly1823
fabulously1845
devastatingly1905
fantastically1923
dizzyingly1952
staggeringly1976
c1175 Ormulum (Burchfield transcript) l. 7284 Wunnderr mikell shame wass. Till issraæle þede.
c1275 (?a1200) Laȝamon Brut (Calig.) (1963) l. 874 Þat feht wes wnder strong.
c1275 (?a1200) Laȝamon Brut (Calig.) (1963) l. 579 Þa wnder-creftie [c1300 Otho wonder-craftie] men.
c1369 G. Chaucer Bk. Duchesse (Fairf.) 452 Than founde I sitte even vpryght A wonder wel farynge knyght.
a1400 (a1325) Cursor Mundi (Gött.) l. 4448 Þe king wid þaim was wonder wrath.
c1420 Prose Life Alex. 46 This prynce was a wyghte man..& wonder trewe till Alexander.
a1475 Liber Cocorum (Sloane) (1862) 23 Wasshe hom and hew hom wondur smalle.
c1536 T. Cranmer Let. 22 Apr. in Remains (1833) I. 162 Wherein I would wonder fain break my mind unto you.
1568 (a1500) Freiris Berwik 167 in W. T. Ritchie Bannatyne MS (1930) IV. 266 Wt that scho smylit woundir lustely.
1596 J. Dalrymple tr. J. Leslie Hist. Scotl. (1888) I. 169 Hadrian heiring this, was woundir discontent.
1725 A. Ramsay Gentle Shepherd ii. iv Now I believe ye like me wonder weel.
This entry has not yet been fully updated (first published 1928; most recently modified version published online December 2021).
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n.c700
adj.a1175v.c888
adv.c1175