Answer: wonder vs. wander
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fandom_grammarToday we’re looking at a pair of words that are easily confused – after all, there’s only one letter different between them. tigerlilly asked us “When do you use ‘wonder’ vs ‘wander,’ like in ‘let the mind wander?’ What is a good way to remember, esp. for non-native English speakers?” Let’s jump right in, with some help from the characters of Doctor Strange.
Wonder is most often used as either a noun or a verb, though it can be an adjective as well (as in wonder drug). The noun wonder derives from the Old English word wundor, meaning a marvelous thing, miracle, or object of astonishment. Related is wundrian, also from Old English, which means to be astonished, or to admire or make wonderful; from this comes our use of wonder as a verb. These meanings have carried through to current usages.
As a noun, the uses of wonder you’ll most commonly see are something that inspires amazement or admiration, astonishment at something new, or a feeling of doubt and uncertainty.
Wonder as a verb usually means to feel surprise, or curiosity or doubt about something.
Wander, on the other hand, is used almost exclusively as a verb. Like wonder, it, too, is derived from Old English, but its root is wandrian, meaning to move about aimlessly. It can be traced all the way back to the Proto Indo-European root word wendh-, which means to turn, wind, or weave. Wander’s basic definition hasn’t changed much at all since wandrian. Most of its definitions still revolve around movement: to move about aimlessly or without any purpose or goal, to follow a winding course, and to go astray (either literally or morally).
The confusion between wonder and wander probably arises when wander is used in its sense of straying in thought—letting the mind wander astigerlilly pointed out above. This is a perfectly valid usage.
At the same time, wonder and wander are not interchangeable; they come from different roots and mean different things. One thing I’ve seen fairly often is using wonder when the rest of the sentence makes it clear that wander should really be the word used, as shown below:
Now, if the character were someone who had never seen a forest before, it’d be perfectly natural to wonder at the forest, but one does not wonder through the forest; one wanders through it.
How should we keep them separate? Well, if you wander, you are probably walking aimlessly, meandering, or going astray. If you wonder, you may be deep in thought, or astonished at something. In addition (as pointed out at Writing Explained.org, linked below), if you wonder, you also ponder, as both actions involve thought.
Sources:
tigerlilly asked us “When do you use ‘wonder’ vs ‘wander,’ like in ‘let the mind wander?’ What is a good way to remember, esp. for non-native English speakers?” Let’s jump right in, with some help from the characters of Doctor Strange.Wonder is most often used as either a noun or a verb, though it can be an adjective as well (as in wonder drug). The noun wonder derives from the Old English word wundor, meaning a marvelous thing, miracle, or object of astonishment. Related is wundrian, also from Old English, which means to be astonished, or to admire or make wonderful; from this comes our use of wonder as a verb. These meanings have carried through to current usages.
As a noun, the uses of wonder you’ll most commonly see are something that inspires amazement or admiration, astonishment at something new, or a feeling of doubt and uncertainty.
It was a wonder that even the exquisite beauty surrounding him in Tibet could not distract Strange from his quest.
“This is the Mirror Dimension,” the Ancient One said, but Strange scarcely heard her, staring in wonder at the sudden change in his surroundings.
Wonder as a verb usually means to feel surprise, or curiosity or doubt about something.
Strange couldn’t bear to look at the wreck of his hands, and wondered why they’d even bothered trying to save him if they couldn’t keep him whole.
Wander, on the other hand, is used almost exclusively as a verb. Like wonder, it, too, is derived from Old English, but its root is wandrian, meaning to move about aimlessly. It can be traced all the way back to the Proto Indo-European root word wendh-, which means to turn, wind, or weave. Wander’s basic definition hasn’t changed much at all since wandrian. Most of its definitions still revolve around movement: to move about aimlessly or without any purpose or goal, to follow a winding course, and to go astray (either literally or morally).
“You must open your mind to possibilities,” Mordo urged Strange. “If you cannot… you will simply wander, lost and alone.”
The confusion between wonder and wander probably arises when wander is used in its sense of straying in thought—letting the mind wander as
tigerlilly pointed out above. This is a perfectly valid usage.Strange let his astral projection settle back into his sleeping body and grinned up at Mordo. “Sorry,” he said, “I was letting my mind wander.”
At the same time, wonder and wander are not interchangeable; they come from different roots and mean different things. One thing I’ve seen fairly often is using wonder when the rest of the sentence makes it clear that wander should really be the word used, as shown below:
(This is an incorrect usage.) His first attempt to use the ring to transport himself sent Strange to an ancient forest; the trees had diameters as wide as he was tall. He wanted to wonder through it, but it was more important to return to Kamar-Taj.
Now, if the character were someone who had never seen a forest before, it’d be perfectly natural to wonder at the forest, but one does not wonder through the forest; one wanders through it.
How should we keep them separate? Well, if you wander, you are probably walking aimlessly, meandering, or going astray. If you wonder, you may be deep in thought, or astonished at something. In addition (as pointed out at Writing Explained.org, linked below), if you wonder, you also ponder, as both actions involve thought.
Sources:
- Merriam-Webster Online here and here
- The Free Dictionary here and here
- Etymonline here and here
- Difference between.com
- Writing Explained.org
