amazement, astonishment - the feeling that accompanies something extremely surprising; "he looked at me in astonishment"

alteration, change, modification - an event that occurs when something passes from one state or phase to another; "the change was intended to increase sales"; "this storm is certainly a change for the worse"; "the neighborhood had undergone few modifications since his last visit years ago"

bombshell, thunderbolt, thunderclap - a shocking surprise; "news of the attack came like a bombshell"

coup de theatre - a dramatic surprise

eye opener - something surprising and revealing

peripeteia, peripetia, peripety - a sudden and unexpected change of fortune or reverse of circumstances (especially in a literary work); "a peripeteia swiftly turns a routine sequence of events into a story worth telling"

blow, shock - an unpleasant or disappointing surprise; "it came as a shock to learn that he was injured"

stunner - an unexpected and amazing event; "the stunner was what happened on Saturday"

disruption, perturbation - the act of causing disorder

amaze, astonish, astound - affect with wonder; "Your ability to speak six languages amazes me!"

explode a bombshell - utter or do something surprising; "Father exploded a bombshell when he forbade us to go to the prom"

catch - discover or come upon accidentally, suddenly, or unexpectedly; catch somebody doing something or in a certain state; "She caught her son eating candy"; "She was caught shoplifting"

flabbergast, bowl over, boggle - overcome with amazement; "This boggles the mind!"

impress, strike, affect, move - have an emotional or cognitive impact upon; "This child impressed me as unusually mature"; "This behavior struck me as odd"

ball over, blow out of the water, floor, shock, take aback, stun - surprise greatly; knock someone's socks off; "I was floored when I heard that I was promoted"

act, move - perform an action, or work out or perform (an action); "think before you act"; "We must move quickly"; "The governor should act on the new energy bill"; "The nanny acted quickly by grabbing the toddler and covering him with a wet towel"

blindside - catch unawares, especially with harmful consequences; "The economic downturn blindsided many investors"

attack, assail - launch an attack or assault on; begin hostilities or start warfare with; "Hitler attacked Poland on September 1, 1939 and started World War II"; "Serbian forces assailed Bosnian towns all week"