✨📕 The NEWThe NEW Collegiate Dictionary, 12th Edition Over 5,000 words added — Buy Now! Collegiate DictionaryBuy Now!
play illustration of a man watching a washing machine overflow
Commonly Confused

'All over sudden' vs. 'All of a sudden'

We'll help you figure it out at once


Is the correct phrase 'all over sudden' or 'all of a sudden'? Senior Editor Emily Brewster explains.

Transcript

Sometimes a word that sounds like the right word and feels like the right word isn't actually the right word. It's an eggcorn. Something that happens sooner than expected doesn't happen "all over sudden," it happens "all of a sudden." Sudden here is an obsolete noun meaning an unexpected occurrence.

Up next

play video ie vs eg
i.e. vs. e.g.

 

Often used, often confused. Here's some guidance and insight.

play further vs farther video
Further vs. Farther

 

They started as same word, but their meanings have drifted apart over time.

play serenity carr next to an illustration of a refrigerator with the letter d in it
Why is there a 'd' in 'fridge' but not in 'refrigerator'?

 

Thawing one of the mysteries of English

play merriam-webster eggcorns title page
What Is an Eggcorn?

 

And how did it get that name?

play body parts video
When Body Parts Are Also Verbs

 

Head, shoulders, metaphors, and toes