Definition of "astonish" []

• To fill with sudden wonder or amazement. See Synonyms at surprise. (verb-transitive)

American Heritage(R) Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright (c) 2011 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

• "He hid himself, and worked always to astonish, which is an egotism, and therefore little."
• "The Brits must use "astonish" differently than do Yanks."
• "He was far more inspired by avant-garde photographers such as Harper's Bazaar art director Alexey Brodovitch -- who instructed his students to "astonish" him -- not to mention the free-form improvisations of abstract expressionist painters, new American jazz and the Beat poets, all commingling in New York at the time."