wondrous
Meaning
inspiring a feeling of wonder or delight; marvelous.
Usage
the view from the mountain peak was a wondrous sight.
she has a wondrous ability to make everyone feel at ease.
the book describes the wondrous adventures of a young explorer.
Etymology
The word 'wondrous' is a late Middle English formation, originating from the obsolete noun 'wonder' combined with the suffix '-ous'. The noun 'wonder' itself has Old English roots in the word 'wundor', meaning a marvelous thing or a miracle, which is of Germanic origin. The suffix '-ous', borrowed from Latin '-osus', denotes possessing a quality or being full of something. Therefore, 'wondrous' literally means "full of wonder" or "characterized by wonder," a sense that has remained consistent from its formation to its modern usage describing something extraordinarily good or beautiful.
Analysis
The word is a simplex form derived from the noun 'wonder' with the adjectival suffix '-ous'. It is not segmentable into independent morphemes from the perspective of the current English spelling without altering the base form ('wondr' is not a standalone morpheme).