amazing

uh-MAY-zing/əˈmeɪzɪŋ/

3 meanings of amazing

1
very goodadjectivecolloquial
Having uniquely wonderful qualities; very good.
She's an amazing cook who never bothers with a recipe.
The band put on an amazing show from the first song to the last.
UsageCan sound gushing in formal writing; there it is usually better to say exactly what is good about the thing.
Similarwonderful, fantastic, superb, terrific, brilliant
Oppositeterrible, awful, mediocre
Note
Praise has replaced surprise here. Amazing has worn down into a general word for very good, and it belongs to casual talk. It pairs readily with pretty, a softener that keeps the praise conversational: "the swaddling's pretty amazing," Charlize Theron was quoted as saying in People Magazine in 2012.
2
astonishingadjective
Astonishing enough to fill someone with wonder, or extremely surprising.
It was amazing how quickly the storm blew over.
The magician's final trick was truly amazing to the whole audience.
UsageOften it's amazing how (or what) + a clause. The thing is amazing; the person who feels the wonder is amazed.
Similarastonishing, astounding, remarkable, extraordinary, incredible
Oppositeordinary, unremarkable, unsurprising
Note
Wonder is what survives here. The verb behind it, amaze, comes from Old English āmasian and once also meant to stun, to bewilder, even to terrify, but those senses are now obsolete. The adjective keeps only the astonishment.
3
wowing someoneverb
Present participle of amaze.
The young pianist is amazing audiences with performances far beyond her years.
His swift recovery is amazing the doctors who first treated him.
UsageAs a verb, it normally takes an object naming whoever is amazed: is amazing audiences. The adjective takes no object and forms comparisons with more and most.
Note
As a gerund it once ran in phrasings that now sound old: "to the amazing of them all" in John Fryer (1698), and "to the amazing of one another" in John Bunyan.

amazing is a form of amaze

amaze, verb: To fill someone with surprise and wonder, leaving them astonished or astounded. Full entry

Forms: amazeamazes he/she/itamazing -ing formamazed past tense, past participle
Spelling: amaze → amazing: drop the e, add -ing

Practice

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Origin

This word is formed from "amaze" plus the suffix "-ing," with "amaze" tracing back to the Old English word āmasian.

Checked 5 Nov 2026 · 2 facts

Amazing is formed from amaze plus -ing. en.wiktionary.org
Amaze traces back to Old English āmasian. en.wiktionary.org