Surprised
/sərˈpraɪzd/noun
Feeling or showing sudden astonishment or unexpected amazement.
Did you know?In French, the ancestor of *surprise* was built from *sur-* (“over”) + *prendre* (“to take”), so the original idea was literally being seized suddenly from above.
Etymological Timeline
Latin
Latin
prehendere
“to seize, grasp, take hold of”
Late Latin
Latin
praehendere
“to seize in advance; catch hold of”
Old French
Old French
surprendre
“to overtake, seize unexpectedly; later, to astonish”
Middle English
English
surprisen
“to seize unexpectedly; to astonish”
Modern English
English
surprised
“feeling or showing sudden astonishment”
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