Marvel

How to spell marvel

6 letters · 2 syllables

How to pronounce marvel

Say the part in capitals loudest.

What does marvel mean?

1. verbTo be filled with wonder or astonishment at something.
2. nounA wonderful or astonishing thing or person.

Marvel in a sentence

• verb

  Visitors often marvel at the size of the old cathedral.

• noun

  The new engine is a marvel of modern design.

• verb

  Engineers still marvel at how the ancient bridge has lasted.

• noun

  The restored painting is a genuine marvel of craftsmanship.

Where does marvel come from?

Language of origin: French

This word travelled into English from the Old French merveille, meaning 'a wonder' or 'an astonishing thing'. That French form grew out of the Latin mirabilia, the plural of mirabile, which meant simply 'a wonderful thing' and was itself built on the verb mirari, 'to wonder at' or 'to be amazed'. The deeper root is the Latin adjective mirus, meaning 'wonderful' or 'astonishing', a root that also gives English the related words 'miracle', 'mirror', and 'admire'. English adopted marvel during the 1300s, first as a noun for something that excites astonishment and soon afterwards as a verb meaning to be filled with wonder. The spelling trap lives less in the base form and more in the inflections, since British writers double the l (marvelled, marvelling) while American writers keep a single l, even though the bare word marvel is identical everywhere.

How the word is built

• marv- (root, from Latin mirari 'to wonder at')
• -el (noun/verb ending, via Old French merveille)