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surprise
[ ser-prahyz, suh- ]
verb (used with object)
- to strike or occur to with a sudden feeling of wonder or astonishment, as through unexpectedness:
Her beauty surprised me.
- to come upon or discover suddenly and unexpectedly:
We surprised the children raiding the cookie jar.
- to make an unexpected assault on (an unprepared army, fort, person, etc.).
- to elicit or bring out suddenly and without warning:
to surprise the facts from the witness.
- to lead or bring unawares, as into doing something not intended:
to surprise a witness into telling the truth.
noun
- an act or instance of surprising or being surprised.
- something that surprises someone; a completely unexpected occurrence, appearance, or statement:
His announcement was a surprise to all.
- an assault, as on an army or a fort, made without warning.
- a coming upon unexpectedly; detecting in the act; taking unawares.
surprise
/ səˈpraɪz; səˈpraɪzɪdlɪ /
verb
- to cause to feel amazement or wonder
- to encounter or discover unexpectedly or suddenly
- to capture or assault suddenly and without warning
- to present with something unexpected, such as a gift
- foll by into to provoke (someone) to unintended action by a trick, etc
to surprise a person into an indiscretion
- often foll by from to elicit by unexpected behaviour or by a trick
to surprise information from a prisoner
noun
- the act or an instance of surprising; the act of taking unawares
- a sudden or unexpected event, gift, etc
- the feeling or condition of being surprised; astonishment
- modifier causing, characterized by, or relying upon surprise
a surprise move
- take by surprise
- to come upon suddenly and without warning
- to capture unexpectedly or catch unprepared
- to astonish; amaze
Derived Forms
- ܰˈ, adjective
- surprisedly, adverb
- ܰˈ, noun
- ܰˈ, noun
Other 51Թ Forms
- ܰ··· [ser-, prahy, -zid-lee, -, prahyzd, -, s, uh, -], adverb
- ܰ·İ noun
- p·ܰ· noun
- ܲȴܰ· adjective
51Թ History and Origins
Origin of surprise1
51Թ History and Origins
Origin of surprise1
Idioms and Phrases
- take by surprise,
- to come upon unawares.
- to astonish; amaze:
The amount of the donation took us completely by surprise.
More idioms and phrases containing surprise
see take by surprise .Synonym Study
Example Sentences
And, surprise, only he has the antidote, giving the public 30 days to find him before the first Hapna users start dropping.
"I don't think people are surprised when I tell them I've had cosmetic surgery because I think it's pretty normal now," she said.
The actions are part of mass visa cancellations that appear to have unfolded at campuses across the country on Friday and caught school administrators by surprise.
Their children were surprised and urged their parents to "enjoy life".
Last November, Roy, from Essex, surprised his son by wearing his medals, which were still in the boxes and tissue paper they came in.
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Related 51Թs
How Do You Spell Surprise?
Spelling tips for surprise
The word surprise is hard to spell for two reasons. First, many people forget to include the first r because it is not emphasized. Second, surprise sounds like it might end in -ize, but it actually ends in -ise.
How to spell surprise: Surprise! There’s an r in the first syllable (even if it often doesn’t sound like there is). You can remember this by picturing the p being surprised that it’s surrounded by an r on both sides. Next, remember that surprise ends in rise, not prize.
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
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