Word family noun wonder wonderment adjective wonderful wonder wondrous verb wonder adverb wonderfully
From Longman Dictionary of Contemporary Englishwonderwon‧der1 /ˈwʌndə $ -ər/ ●●● S1 W2 verb [intransitive, transitive] 1 NOT SUREto think about something that you are not sure about and try to guess what is true, what will happen etcwonder who/what/how etc I wonder how James is getting on. What are they going to do now, I wonder?wonder if/whether I wonder if I’ll recognize Philip after all these years. He’s been leaving work early a lot – it makes you wonder, doesn’t it?2 → I wonder if/whether3 → I was wondering if/whether4 SURPRISEDto feel surprised and unable to believe somethingwonder about/at Sometimes I wonder about his behaviour.wonder how I wonder how he dares to show his face!I don’t wonder British English (=I am not surprised) I don’t wonder you’re tired.I shouldn’t wonder British English (=I would not be surprised about something) He’ll come back soon enough, I shouldn’t wonder.5 DON'T THINK SO/DOUBT ITto doubt or question whether something is true ‘Is she serious?’ ‘I wonder.’wonder if/whether Sometimes I wonder if he’s got any sense at all!GRAMMAR: Patterns with wonder• You wonder what will happen: I wonder what she’ll say when she finds out. • You wonder what would happen if something else happened (when talking about imaginary situations): I wonder what would happen if I said that I was leaving. • You wonder if you should do something: I wonder if we should tell her.→ See Verb tableExamples from the Corpus
wonder• He says he's had no formal training but when you see how good his work is, you start to wonder.• The picture forces the viewer to wonder at the subject of the crowd's attention.• Groggy with heat, Jackie wondered feebly if they changed the sign with every birth and death.• She wondered if she could think with what was left of her grey matter.• I wonder if she'll recognize me after all these years.• Garner wonders if things would have turned out differently for Edward if she had been able to spend more time with him.• Sometimes I wonder now whether I dreamed some of it, so much was just unbelievable, so grotesque.• He wondered whether he would be able to find the hotel again.• And Laura begins to wonder why her husband has become so erratic.• Sometimes he wondered why his father hated him.wonder who/what/how etc• She was wondering what caused it when all of a sudden there was an enormous explosion.• She wondered what experience had moulded him into the cynical man that he now was.• He soon became aware of pro-communist bias in subjects like history and wondered how he could find the real truth.• Geez, I wonder how long you were waiting?• Sometimes he wondered how many dead people there were to a cloud.• I walk down the street and wonder what people are thinking.• She knew she was from nowhere and wondered how she might turn that to her advantage.• I wonder who will wake us up?wonder about/at• He wondered at her ability never to reveal the slightest disquiet in front of her husband.• Elizabeth Fry had to struggle hard to prove that women could be rehabilitated, hence the wonder at her achievements in Newgate.• One can only wonder At so grotesque a blunder.• Alice rather wondered at the choice of Bert; why had Andrew changed his mind about him?• But one must wonder about the competition.• I think Mr Greenleaf was wondering about the trains.• Last, they wondered about themselves.• Chatterjee wondered about this as it began to seem more than simply coincidence.wonder if/whether• Nevertheless, many wonder whether any administratively sophisticated society can be run on this basis.• He wondered if he might not find them all.• I wonder if he was drunk as well.• I felt the material again and again, wondering if in the United States everybody wore clothes made of such beautiful cloth.• Although the licensing agreement is good news for Apple, some wonder whether it is too little, too late.• Maggie had developed a raging thirst and wondered if she could get a drink at the Commemorative Hall.• I wondered if there was another child in all those windows or all the world who felt as miserable as I did.• I wonder if Uncle Félix will marry her?wonderwonder2 ●●○ noun 1 admiration a) [uncountable]SURPRISED a feeling of surprise and admiration for something very beautiful or new to you SYN awe The sight of the Taj Mahal filled us with wonder. b) [countable]SURPRISED something that makes you feel surprise and admiration technological wonders the Seven Wonders of the World2 → (it’s) no/small/little wonder (that)3 → it’s a wonder (that)4 → do/work wonders5 → wonders will never cease6 clever person [singular] British EnglishGOOD AT someone who is good at doing difficult things → a nine days' wonder at nine(3)Examples from the Corpus
wonder• The sense of wonder was swiftly followed by another emotion.• It had given me a world of wonder and time to draw it all in.• Not through explanation-that only illuminates the real wonder.• It is small wonder that they want out.• How could snow not be the wonder of the world?• This graphic view of the Internet has introduced millions to the wonders of digital photos and graphics.• You shake your head with wonder at your previous, late-night concerns.wonderwonder3 adjective [only before noun] EFFECTIVEvery good and effective a new wonder drugExamples from the Corpus
wonder• Eric Hahn will replace Marc Andreessen, the 26-year-old wonder boy who helped to write the Mosaic browser.• a new wonder drugwonder drug• Cortisone was hailed as a wonder drug for a whole host of skin problems and inflammatory disorders.• She asked me to help her get hold of some of this new wonder drug, penicillin.• The team invents a wonder drug to cure depression.• The wonder drug was duly acquired and miraculously did the trick.Origin wonder2 Old English wundor 