throw (someone) a curve/curveball

idiom

: to present (someone) with a difficult and unexpected problem, situation, question, etc.
The reporter threw the candidate a curve by asking about his past drug use.
Recently, Mother Nature threw us a curveball in the form of a 50-degree day in the middle of January.Molly Cavanaugh
The sea will throw you a lot of curves, so versatile navigation gear is a must.Advertisement

Examples of throw (someone) a curve/curveball in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web Fate didn’t throw a curveball at Justin Hillman when he was born. Jeff Vorva, Chicago Tribune, 1 Aug. 2023 Why not throw a curve into your garden with a round garden bed? Renee Freemon Mulvihill, Better Homes & Gardens, 29 Mar. 2023 But throw a curveball, and the opposite side bulges out to catch. Yoni Heisler, BGR, 20 Sep. 2022 Nature can throw a curve ball; nothing is guaranteed. oregonlive, 21 Mar. 2022 The public health threat from variants could throw a curveball into the recovery. Dallas News, 23 June 2021 The purpose is to throw a curveball at artificial intelligence agents that play the game. Mayank Kejriwal, The Conversation, 7 Apr. 2021

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'throw (someone) a curve/curveball.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

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Cite this Entry

“Throw (someone) a curve/curveball.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/throw%20%28someone%29%20a%20curve%2Fcurveball. Accessed 6 Oct. 2024.

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