surprise

surprise
—surprisedly /seuhr pruy"zid lee, -pruyzd"-, seuh-/, adv. —surpriser, n.
/seuhr pruyz", seuh-/, v., surprised, surprising, n.
v.t.
1. to strike or occur to with a sudden feeling of wonder or astonishment, as through unexpectedness: Her beauty surprised me.
2. to come upon or discover suddenly and unexpectedly: We surprised the children raiding the cookie jar.
3. to make an unexpected assault on (an unprepared army, fort, person, etc.).
4. to elicit or bring out suddenly and without warning: to surprise the facts from the witness.
5. to lead or bring unawares, as into doing something not intended: to surprise a witness into telling the truth.
n.
6. an act or instance of surprising or being surprised.
7. something that surprises someone; a completely unexpected occurrence, appearance, or statement: His announcement was a surprise to all.
8. an assault, as on an army or a fort, made without warning.
9. a coming upon unexpectedly; detecting in the act; taking unawares.
10. take by surprise,
a. to come upon unawares.
b. to astonish; amaze: The amount of the donation took us completely by surprise.
[1425-75; (n.) late ME < AF surpris(e), MF, ptp. of surprendre, equiv. to sur- SUR-1 + pris (masc.), prise (fem.) < L prensus, -sa, equiv. to prend(ere), contracted var. of prehendere to take (see PREHENSION) + -tus, -ta ptp. suffix; (v.) late ME surprisen < AF surpris(e) (ptp.), MF, as above]
Syn. 1. SURPRISE, ASTONISH, AMAZE, ASTOUND mean to strike with wonder because of unexpectedness, strangeness, unusualness, etc. TO SURPRISE is to take unawares or to affect with wonder: surprised at receiving a telegram. TO ASTONISH is to strike with wonder by something unlooked for, startling, or seemingly inexplicable: astonished at someone's behavior. TO AMAZE is to astonish so greatly as to disconcert or bewilder: amazed at such an evidence of stupidity. TO ASTOUND is to so overwhelm with surprise that one is unable to think or act: astounded by the news.

* * *


Universalium. 2010.

Игры ⚽ Поможем сделать НИР
Synonyms:
, , / , , / , , , , / ,


Look at other dictionaries:

  • surprise — [ syrpriz ] n. f. • XVIe; « impôt extraordinaire » XIIe; de surprendre 1 ♦ Vx Action par laquelle on prend ou l on est pris à l improviste. « La Surprise de l amour », comédie de Marivaux. 2 ♦ Vx Action d attaquer à l improviste. ♢ (1549) Mod.… …   Encyclopédie Universelle

  • Surprise — is something that is unsuspected. Surprise may refer to:Unsuspected things* Surprise (emotion) * Surprise party, a party of which the honored person is not told of beforehand. * Surprise factor, the fundamental element in humor that puts a twist… …   Wikipedia

  • Surprise — ist der Name verschiedener Orte in den USA: Surprise (Arizona) Surprise (Indiana) Surprise (Kalifornien) Surprise (Nebraska) Surprise (New York) Surprise (Virginia) Surprise (Tennessee) sowie: ein Schweizer Straßenmagazin (siehe Surprise… …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • surprise — vb 1 Surprise, waylay, ambush are comparable when they mean to attack unawares. Surprise is in military as well as in general use. As a technical term it implies strategy in the disposition and movement of troops and equipment and secrecy in the… …   New Dictionary of Synonyms

  • surprise — Surprise. s. f. Action par laquelle on surprend. Il s est rendu maistre de cette Place par surprise. il s est servi de surprise autant que de force. c est une estrange surprise. il faut se garder des surprises des chicaneurs. Surprise, se prend… …   Dictionnaire de l'Académie française

  • surprise — sur·prise n 1: a condition or situation in which a party to a proceeding is unexpectedly placed without any fault or neglect of his or her own and that entitles the party to relief (as a new trial) 2: an aspect of procedural unconscionability… …   Law dictionary

  • Surprise — Surprise, NE U.S. village in Nebraska Population (2000): 44 Housing Units (2000): 22 Land area (2000): 0.399762 sq. miles (1.035380 sq. km) Water area (2000): 0.000000 sq. miles (0.000000 sq. km) Total area (2000): 0.399762 sq. miles (1.035380 sq …   StarDict's U.S. Gazetteer Places

  • surprise — [sər prīz′, sə prīz′] vt. surprised, surprising [ME surprysen < OFr surpris, pp. of sorprendre, to surprise, take napping < sur (see SUR 1) + prendre, to take (see PRIZE2)] 1. to come upon suddenly or unexpectedly; take unawares 2. to at …   English World dictionary

  • Surprise — Sur*prise , n. [F. surprise, fr. surprendre, surpris; sur over + prendre to take, L. prehendere. See {Sur }, and {Prehensile}.] 1. The act of coming upon, or taking, unawares; the act of seizing unexpectedly; surprisal; as, the fort was taken by… …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • Surprise — Sur*prise , v. t. [imp. & p. p. {Surprised}; p. pr. & vb. n. {Surprising}.] [From {Surprise}, n.: cf. F. surprendre, p. p. surpris.] 1. To come or fall suddenly and unexpectedly; to take unawares; to seize or capture by unexpected attack. [1913… …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • surprise — [n] something amazing; state of amazement abruptness, amazement, astonishment, astoundment, attack, awe, bewilderment, bombshell*, consternation, curiosity, curveball*, disappointment, disillusion, eye opener*, fortune, godsend*, incredulity,… …   New thesaurus

Share the article and excerpts

Direct link
… Do a right-click on the link above
and select “Copy Link”