variants
or less commonly surprize
surprised also surprized; surprising also surprizing
1
: to attack unexpectedly
also
: to capture by an unexpected attack
2
a
: to take unawares
Police surprised the burglars in the store.
b
: to detect or elicit by a taking unawares
… sometimes surprised a tragic shadow in her eyes.—
Willa Cather
Willa Cather3
: to strike with wonder or amazement especially because unexpected
His conduct surprised me.
: to cause astonishment or surprise
Her success didn't surprise.
surpriser
noun
Examples of surprise in a Sentence
Verb
The results will surprise you.
Nothing you could say would surprise me.
They surprised everyone by moving to the Bahamas.
A police officer surprised the burglars.
The troops were surprised by an attack from the north.
Recent Examples on the Web
Literary Hub, 3 June 2026
Dietary requirements are well catered for; every possible intolerance from celery to sesame is marked on the menu, and every milk substitute is available, which surprised me in an English country hotel.
—Harriet Marsden, TheWeek, 2 June 2026
The big hits didn’t surprise Anthony, who has pitched every playoff inning this season for the Panthers, who started out 0-4 after sustaining heavy graduation losses from last year’s title team.
—Rick Armstrong, Chicago Tribune, 2 June 2026
That, Navratilova said, is what surprised her most.
—Dan Zaksheske Outkick, FOXNews.com, 2 June 2026
See All Example Sentences for surprise
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Verb
Those were the circumstances under which my mother surprised me with one additional detail about her long-ago time in Paris.
—Literary Hub, 3 June 2026
Dietary requirements are well catered for; every possible intolerance from celery to sesame is marked on the menu, and every milk substitute is available, which surprised me in an English country hotel.
—Harriet Marsden, TheWeek, 2 June 2026
The big hits didn’t surprise Anthony, who has pitched every playoff inning this season for the Panthers, who started out 0-4 after sustaining heavy graduation losses from last year’s title team.
—Rick Armstrong, Chicago Tribune, 2 June 2026
That, Navratilova said, is what surprised her most.
—Dan Zaksheske Outkick, FOXNews.com, 2 June 2026
See All Example Sentences for surprise
Cite this Entry
“Surprise.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/surprise. Accessed 9 Jun. 2026.
Copy CitationKids Definition
surprise
1 of 2 noun
sur·prise
sə(r)-ˈprīz 
1
a
: an attack made without warning
b
: an act or an instance of coming upon someone suddenly
2
: something that surprises
3
: the state of being surprised : astonishment
surprise
2 of 2 verb
variants
also surprize
surprised also surprized; surprising also surprizing
1
a
: to attack without warning
b
: to capture by an unexpected attack
2
: to come upon unexpectedly
3
: to fill with wonder or amazement because unexpected
surpriser
noun
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