English Reference
Noun

bonanza

n. countable
C1 Advanced US /bəˈnænzə/ UK /bənˈænzɐ/ bo·nan·za UK spelling bonanza's, bonanza's Mining

n.a situation where people suddenly make a lot of money or find something very valuable. It can also mean a large amount of something good that happens all at once.

n.a situation or event that creates sudden wealth, profit, or good fortune. Originally referring to a rich vein of ore in mining, it now describes any large-scale windfall or abundance.


SIMPLE

The tech company's new app created a profit bonanza.

CONTEXTUAL

The holiday season proved to be a sales bonanza for local retailers, with many reporting record-breaking revenue.

COMPLEX

What began as a modest discovery of gold soon turned into a full-scale mining bonanza, drawing thousands of hopeful prospectors to the remote valley in search of quick riches.

Usage

Often used with 'for' to indicate the beneficiary ('a bonanza for investors').

Driven by nutrient-rich coastal upwellings generated by the East Australian Current , these hotspots provide temporary krill and baitfish bonanzas.

Phys.org· 28 Aug 2026

They also offer a bonanza to scientists who come each year to the Abrolhos archipelago off the coast of the state of Bahia to record and study hundreds of the cetaceans.

Phys.org· 28 Aug 2026

Etymology tree Proto-Indo-European *melh₂-der. Ancient Greek μᾰλᾰκός (mălăkós) Proto-Indo-European *-h₂ Proto-Indo-European *-éh₂ Proto-Indo-European *-i-eh₂ Proto-Hellenic *-íā Ancient Greek -ῐ́ᾱ (-ĭ́ā) Ancient Greek μᾰλᾰκῐ́ᾱ (mălăkĭ́ā)bor. Latin malacia ▲ Latin bonusinflu. Vulgar Latin *bonacia Spanish bonanzabor. English bonanza Borrowed from Spanish bonanza (“dead calm, fair weather, good luck, rich lode”), from Vulgar Latin *bonacia (“lull, dead calm”), in turn from Latin malacia (“calm sea”), influenced by bonus (“good”) under the false impression that initial mal- is a derivate of malus (“bad”).

Etymology adapted from Wiktionary, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.

This entry
Origin Latin malacia
Level C1 · Advanced
Frequency Occasional
Updated