surprised 1 of 2

adjective

variants also surprized
Definition of surprisednext
as in startled

Related Words

Relevance

Dissimilar Words

surprised

2 of 2

verb

variants also surprized
past tense of surprise
1
as in amazed
to make a strong impression on (someone) with something unexpected I was very surprised when my parents offered to pay the down payment on our house

Synonyms & Similar Words
2
as in ambushed
to lie in wait for and attack by surprise FBI agents surprised the counterfeiters in their own base of operations

Synonyms & Similar Words

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of surprised
Adjective
Whenever this feature comes up in conversations with other parents, at least one person is surprised and grateful to learn about it. — Emily Palmer Heller, Vulture, 21 Oct. 2026 In other words, don’t be surprised if Peacock, Fox One or other services are available soon as an add-on within Netflix, and sooner rather than later, mirroring what has been a successful strategy from the likes of Roku, Prime Video and YouTube. — Alex Weprin, HollywoodReporter, 21 Oct. 2026
Verb
What surprised me most about that decision inside our own company wasn’t the vendors’ answer. — Juan Carlos Santiago, Forbes.com, 20 Oct. 2026 Her family supported her, even when her tastes surprised them; school could be lonelier. — Jeff Ihaza, Rolling Stone, 19 Oct. 2026 See All Example Sentences for surprised
Recent Examples of Synonyms for surprised
  1. startled
  2. amazed
  3. ambushed
  4. awed
  5. shocked
  6. attacked
  7. bewildered
  8. stunned
Adjective
  • In the past, horses have collapsed, gotten startled and run off, hitting cars or other objects, with each accident resulting in fresh calls for a ban.
    — Anthony Izaguirre, Los Angeles Times, 14 Oct. 2026
  • Ewart, 43, a fellow opponent of the data center project, was startled to hear that.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 19 Sep. 2026
Definition of startled
Verb
  • Larry remarks, amazed all these years later by this odd before-they-were-stars encounter.
    — Blake J. Harris, Vulture, 12 Oct. 2026
  • And especially with the stock market—I’m amazed the stock market still hasn’t really taken the hit.
    — Victoria Feng, The Atlantic, 19 Sep. 2026
Definition of amazed
Verb
  • Three planeloads of soldiers from El Salvador landed in Haiti on Friday, days after the Central American nation’s president angrily threatened Haitian gangs that ambushed a group of Salvadoran soldiers over the past weekend who remain missing.
    — Jacqueline Charles, Miami Herald, 23 Oct. 2026
  • Task Force were returning to their camp Sunday in a white all-terrain Toyota when they were ambushed by heavily armed criminals, according to the Salvadoran military.
    — Widlore Mérancourt, Washington Post, 23 Oct. 2026
Definition of ambushed
Adjective
  • The syrupy strings, treacly piano and awed choral vocals conjure an atmosphere of strained enchantment, suggesting a film burdened by fatal amounts of whimsy and emotional manipulation.
    — Los Angeles Times, Los Angeles Times, 22 Oct. 2026
  • Related Articles The runway appearance of both Hosk and Palvin has set the internet aflame, with awed viewers commending the new moms and calling attention to the indelible power of women.
    — Kaleigh Werner, Footwear News, 20 Oct. 2026
Definition of awed
Verb
  • The attack shocked the nation, and Jordan declared three days of mourning for the victims.
    — Omar Akour, Los Angeles Times, 27 Oct. 2026
  • The company has sought to significantly reduce costs in Africa since the MultiChoice buyout, with streamer Showmax discontinued earlier this year in a move that shocked the local industry.
    — Max Goldbart, Deadline, 22 Oct. 2026
Definition of shocked
Verb
  • The men were returning to camp when their white armored Toyota Land Cruiser was attacked by members of the two Haitian gangs.
    — Jacqueline Charles, Miami Herald, 23 Oct. 2026
  • After Israel accepted its meager portion, Arabs attacked and retained a significant part of the land that was to be divided between Jews and Arabs.
    — Arkansas Online, Arkansas Online, 23 Oct. 2026
Definition of attacked
Adjective
  • They were soon surrounded by a crowd of about 1,000 bewildered villagers, who alerted forest officials patrolling nearby.
    — Rhea Mogul, CNN Money, 14 Oct. 2026
  • What appears before the bewildered trio is a boy with a face resembling a frog’s, named Fūsuke.
    — Jennifer Maas, Variety, 10 Oct. 2026
Definition of bewildered
Verb
  • Debbie Sullivan, who has lived in the neighborhood just west of Country Walk for more than 30 years, told CBS News Miami she was stunned by the violence in her community.
    — Sergio Candido, CBS News, 22 Oct. 2026
  • Resigned to releasing it themselves on YouTube, Sakurai and André were stunned when Cartoon Network’s Adult Swim took a flyer on the series in 2010.
    — Brian Davids, HollywoodReporter, 21 Oct. 2026
Definition of stunned

Browse Nearby Words

surprise
surprised
surprises
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Surprised.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/surprised. Accessed 28 Oct. 2026.

Copy Citation
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences

More from Merriam-Webster

Word of the Day

Listen to the pronunciation of grotesque

See Definitions and Examples »

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

How to Use 'Who' vs. 'Whom'

Merriam-Webster’s Great Big List of Words You Love to Hate

'Affect' vs. 'Effect'

'A' or 'an'? What about before 'h'? An Indefinite Article Guide

Why is '-ed' sometimes pronounced at the end of a word?
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

The Longest Long Words List

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't

12 Lovely and Unusual Words for the Natural World

Why do we 'bury the lede?'

'Za' and 9 Other Words to Help You Win at SCRABBLE
See More

Popular

See More

How to Use 'Who' vs. 'Whom'

The Longest Long Words List

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't
See More

Games & Quizzes

See All
Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.
Quordle Can you solve 4 words at once?
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.
Blossom Pick the best words!
Play Missing Letter: a crossword with a twist. Each of the 25 puzzle words start with a different letter of the alphabet. Which letter is missing?
The Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
different halloween monsters in silhouette
A Monstrous Vocab Quiz Words That Go Bump in the Night
See All