surprising

adj, noun — 2 senses

surprising

adj

UK /səˈpɹaɪzɪŋ/ · US /sɚˈpɹaɪzɪŋ/

Etymology From surprise + -ing.

1

Causing surprise.

  • A surprising number of people attended the rally.
  • With this the second of three games in seven days for Stoke, it was hardly surprising to see nine changes from the side that started against Newcastle in the Premier League on Monday.2011 November 3, David Ornstein, “Macc Tel-Aviv 1-2 Stoke”, in BBC Sport:
1 more example
  • Investors face a quandary. Cash offers a return of virtually zero in many developed countries; government-bond yields may have risen in recent weeks but they are still unattractive. Equities have suffered two big bear markets since 2000 and are wobbling again. It is hardly surprising that pension funds, insurers and endowments are searching for new sources of return.2013 July 6, “The rise of smart beta”, in The Economist, volume 408, number 8843, page 68:
Synonyms
astonishing, unexpected, astounding, awesome, random, shocking, spontaneous, sudden, surprise, heartstopping, surprising, unbelievable, unpredictable, wonderful
Antonyms
commonplace, everyday, expected, humdrum, mundane, unsurprising
Derived terms
surprisingly, surprisingness, unsurprising

surprising

noun

Etymology From surprise + -ing.

1

A situation in which somebody is surprised.

  • But the comments of most of these novelists are the record of their continual surprisings by the varieties of moral and aesthetic truths.1983, David Dowling, Novelists on Novelists, page xii:

Entry derived from the Wiktionary, under licence CC BY-SA 4.0 — list of authors.