as in suddenly
without warning
the snow started unexpectedly
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Recent Examples of unexpectedly
Typically, Angels work alone, but when the Christmas Connection Department faces the threat of downsizing, Monica and Michael are unexpectedly paired to ensure Daisy and Patrick fall in love before Christmas.
—
Emlyn Travis, Entertainment Weekly, 24 Oct. 2025
Things might be different now, as MFE this week unexpectedly cleared out the ProSieben C-suite and replacing respected ProSieben CEO Bert Habets with its own CFO, Marco Giordani.
—Jesse Whittock, Deadline, 24 Oct. 2025
Life took you from me so unexpectedly, and nothing has been the same since.
—Sean Neumann, PEOPLE, 24 Oct. 2025
Naroditsky, an American chess grandmaster who amassed a large online following through streaming and teaching, died unexpectedly at the age of 29, according to a statement released by his family via the Charlotte Chess Center on Monday.
—George Ramsay, CNN Money, 23 Oct. 2025
Even worse is when an editor feels comfortable in their role and gets pushed out anyway, unexpectedly.
—Literary Hub, 23 Oct. 2025
Yerneni admits to struggling with flight anxiety herself, describing how witnessing her intern’s calm was unexpectedly reassuring.
—Soo Kim, MSNBC Newsweek, 22 Oct. 2025
Daniel Naroditsky, a chess grandmaster who built a global following through his accessible teaching style and blitz chess mastery, died unexpectedly at 29, his family announced Monday.
—Dave Smith, Fortune, 22 Oct. 2025
Daniel Naroditsky, one of the world’s greatest chess champions and who coached at the Charlotte Chess Center, died unexpectedly on Monday, his family said.
—Joe Marusak, Charlotte Observer, 21 Oct. 2025
Emlyn Travis, Entertainment Weekly, 24 Oct. 2025
Things might be different now, as MFE this week unexpectedly cleared out the ProSieben C-suite and replacing respected ProSieben CEO Bert Habets with its own CFO, Marco Giordani.
—Jesse Whittock, Deadline, 24 Oct. 2025
Life took you from me so unexpectedly, and nothing has been the same since.
—Sean Neumann, PEOPLE, 24 Oct. 2025
Naroditsky, an American chess grandmaster who amassed a large online following through streaming and teaching, died unexpectedly at the age of 29, according to a statement released by his family via the Charlotte Chess Center on Monday.
—George Ramsay, CNN Money, 23 Oct. 2025
Even worse is when an editor feels comfortable in their role and gets pushed out anyway, unexpectedly.
—Literary Hub, 23 Oct. 2025
Yerneni admits to struggling with flight anxiety herself, describing how witnessing her intern’s calm was unexpectedly reassuring.
—Soo Kim, MSNBC Newsweek, 22 Oct. 2025
Daniel Naroditsky, a chess grandmaster who built a global following through his accessible teaching style and blitz chess mastery, died unexpectedly at 29, his family announced Monday.
—Dave Smith, Fortune, 22 Oct. 2025
Daniel Naroditsky, one of the world’s greatest chess champions and who coached at the Charlotte Chess Center, died unexpectedly on Monday, his family said.
—Joe Marusak, Charlotte Observer, 21 Oct. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for unexpectedly
suddenly
Adverb
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One’s impression is suddenly modified by the casual strength his handshake conveys, and rightly so, for beneath the elegant lines of his suit are hidden a hard body and the stamina of 10 battalions.—
Lizz Schumer,
PEOPLE,
21 Oct. 2025
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But there’s a dark side to this turn against the suddenly middle-aged, passé millennial generation.—
Nick Lichtenberg,
Fortune,
21 Oct. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Unexpectedly.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/unexpectedly. Accessed 28 Oct. 2025.
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