something of a surprise

  • 1surprise — [sər prīz′, sə prīz′] vt. surprised, surprising [ME surprysen < OFr surpris, pp. of sorprendre, to surprise, take napping < sur (see SUR 1) + prendre, to take (see PRIZE2)] 1. to come upon suddenly or unexpectedly; take unawares 2. to at …

    English World dictionary

  • 2surprise — [[t]sə(r)pra͟ɪz[/t]] ♦♦ surprises, surprising, surprised 1) N COUNT: oft N to n A surprise is an unexpected event, fact, or piece of news. I have a surprise for you: We are moving to Switzerland!... It may come as a surprise to some that a normal …

    English dictionary

  • 3something — some|thing W1S1 [ˈsʌmθıŋ] pron 1.) used to mean a particular thing when you do not know its name or do not know exactly what it is →↑anything, everything ↑everything, nothing ↑nothing ▪ There s something in my eye. ▪ Sarah said something about… …

    Dictionary of contemporary English

  • 4surprise — sur•prise [[t]sərˈpraɪz, sə [/t]] v. prised, pris•ing, n. 1) to strike with a sudden feeling of wonder or astonishment, esp. by being unexpected 2) to come upon or discover suddenly and unexpectedly 3) to make an unexpected assault on (an… …

    From formal English to slang

  • 5something — [[t]sʌ̱mθɪŋ[/t]] ♦ 1) PRON INDEF: oft PRON adj, PRON adj about n You use something to refer to a thing, situation, event, or idea, without saying exactly what it is. He realized right away that there was something wrong... There was something… …

    English dictionary

  • 6Surprise — is something that is unsuspected. Surprise may refer to:Unsuspected things* Surprise (emotion) * Surprise party, a party of which the honored person is not told of beforehand. * Surprise factor, the fundamental element in humor that puts a twist… …

    Wikipedia

  • 7surprise — [n] something amazing; state of amazement abruptness, amazement, astonishment, astoundment, attack, awe, bewilderment, bombshell*, consternation, curiosity, curveball*, disappointment, disillusion, eye opener*, fortune, godsend*, incredulity,… …

    New thesaurus

  • 8surprise — (n.) late 14c., unexpected attack or capture, from M.Fr. surprise a taking unawares, from noun use of pp. of O.Fr. surprendre to overtake, from sur over (see SUR (Cf. sur )) + prendre to take, from L. prendere, contracted from prehendere to grasp …

    Etymology dictionary

  • 9surprise — vb 1 Surprise, waylay, ambush are comparable when they mean to attack unawares. Surprise is in military as well as in general use. As a technical term it implies strategy in the disposition and movement of troops and equipment and secrecy in the… …

    New Dictionary of Synonyms

  • 10Surprise — Sur*prise , v. t. [imp. & p. p. {Surprised}; p. pr. & vb. n. {Surprising}.] [From {Surprise}, n.: cf. F. surprendre, p. p. surpris.] 1. To come or fall suddenly and unexpectedly; to take unawares; to seize or capture by unexpected attack. [1913… …

    The Collaborative International Dictionary of English