to bowl over
3
4.9
- phrasal verb
- /boʊl ˈoʊvər/
- Informal
:
asombrar
- Because, yeah, I've just been bowled over by by people's reaction to it and how much they like and yeah, so we'll see.
And is that capacity, that knowledge, that certainty that there would always be women who will be bowled over by him, that makes him what he is?
- And is that capacity, that knowledge, that certainty that there would always be women who will be bowled over by him, that makes him what he is?
- Because, yeah, I've just been bowled over by by people's reaction to it and how much they like and yeah, so we'll see.
Examples
-
And is that capacity, that knowledge, that certainty that there would always be women who will be bowled over by him, that makes him what he is?
-
Not everyone, though, is bowled over by the prospect of a glittering prize from the world of learning.
Academic text (2002) -
How do you react when it feels like life is bowling you over?
Blog text (15) -
Get ready to be bowled over.
-
I am seriously beside myself that so many critics are bowled over by this thing.
Blog text (19) -
Already captivated by her mind, I was bowled over by her beauty.
Blog text (27) -
Sissy is bowled over, frightened, stunned, elated, and moved almost to tears.
Fiction book (1993) -
I was completely bowl over by the amazing performance of the young actor.
-
Her unexpected kindness really bowl over everyone at the charity event.
-
The stunning scenery during our vacation bowl over us every day.
Synonyms
294
1.0
To surprise someone very much
63
4.1
To amaze people with great skill, beauty, or clever ideas
50
6.2
To surprise someone a lot and make them feel excited
41
4.2
To surprise someone very much and make them feel amazed
33
4.1
Make someone feel very surprised and unable to speak
18
4.7
To impress someone strongly so they feel admiration
13
3.5
To surprise someone very much
8
7.4
To surprise someone very much
To make someone feel very surprised
To surprise someone very much
To make someone very impressed or be much better than something
Antonyms
How Impressed
Surface Forms
Morphology
The literal senses of 'bowl' (to roll/deliver a ball) and 'over' (above/movement) do not directly yield 'to greatly impress', so the meaning is not fully compositional. However, there is a clear metaphorical extension (being physically 'bowled/knocked over' by something surprising or impressive) that makes the figurative sense somewhat inferable, so a B1 learner might partially guess it but would often need exposure to be certain.
Etymology
Bowl over in the sense 'to greatly impress or surprise' comes from the same picture: something is so strong it could knock you off your feet, like being hit and pushed over. So the image of being knocked down helps explain why we use it to mean 'to astonish' or 'to impress' today.