unexpected
Americanadjective
adjective
Synonym Usage
See sudden.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Etymology
Origin of unexpected
Explanation
Use the adjective unexpected to describe something that takes you by surprise. An unexpected knock on your front door might make you jump. When you don't anticipate something, and have no clue that it's coming, you can call it unexpected. A successful surprise party is always unexpected, and an unexpected visitor can be exciting or inconvenient, depending on who it is. If you expect an event, you know it's going to occur, but if it's unexpected, it seems to come from nowhere. The Latin root is expectare, "await, look out for, desire, or hope."
Vocabulary lists containing unexpected
This Week in Words: Current Events Vocabulary for April 22–April 28, 2023
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Week 5: Scientific Viewpoints
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Strange
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Patrolling King's Cross and the surrounding streets, homeless outreach workers Eabha and Elise say they find women in unexpected places.
From BBC • Jun. 10, 2026
So the fact that I get to do it and that I have a tiny bit of control over what I get to do is a real gift because it was very unexpected.
From Los Angeles Times • Jun. 9, 2026
Mice showed far less lose-shift behavior, making them less likely to adjust their decisions after an unexpected outcome.
From Science Daily • Jun. 8, 2026
Strategy Executive Chairman Michael Saylor has become one of the most visible Bitcoin bulls over the last few years, and the decision to sell—while not totally unexpected —likely dented retail investors’ confidence in the asset.
From Barron's • Jun. 8, 2026
I hadn’t gone a hundred yards when the unexpected happened.
From "Summer of the Monkeys" by Wilson Rawls
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
