astonish
/əs'tɔniʃ/
Học thuậtThân thiện
Definition
- Verb:
- To affect someone with a sudden and strong feeling of surprise or wonder; to amaze greatly.
- To cause someone to be filled with overwhelming surprise or disbelief.
Usage
- The verb "astonish" is a transitive verb, meaning it requires a direct object (someone or something that is astonished).
- It is often used in passive constructions (e.g., "I was astonished by...").
- It describes a reaction to something unexpected, impressive, or hard to believe.
Examples
- Active Voice:
- The magician's final trick astonished the entire audience.
- Her profound knowledge of ancient history astonishes her professors.
- Passive Voice:
- We were astonished by the sheer beauty of the landscape.
- He was astonished to discover he had won the award.
Advanced Usage
- "to astonish someone with something": To cause surprise by means of a specific thing.
- She astonished the committee with her innovative proposal.
- "to be astonished at/by something": To be greatly surprised by something.
- I am continually astonished at his generosity.
- They were astonished by the sudden change in plans.
Variants and Related Words
- Astonishing (adjective): Causing great surprise or amazement.
- The team made an astonishing recovery.
- Astonished (adjective): Feeling or showing great surprise.
- She had an astonished expression on her face.
- Astonishment (noun): Great surprise.
- To my utter astonishment, he agreed immediately.
Synonyms
- Amaze: To surprise very much.
- Astound: To shock with wonder.
- Stun: To shock or overwhelm.
- Flabbergast (informal): To overcome with surprise and bewilderment.
Antonyms
- Bore: To weary by dullness.
- Expect: To regard as likely to happen.
Idioms and Phrases
- Astonish the world: To do something so remarkable it surprises everyone.
- The young inventor astonished the world with her groundbreaking device.
Verb
- affect with wonder
- Your ability to speak six languages amazes me!