unannounced
Britishadjective
Explanation
Anything unannounced is a total surprise. If your neighbor frequently barges into your house unannounced, especially in the middle of dinner, you might want to start locking your doors. When an organization doesn't make a formal statement before doing something, it's often described as unannounced, like the unannounced change in the ingredients of your favorite soda or the unannounced delay of your flight to Hawaii. You can talk about anything unexpected using this adjective: "Their unannounced marriage ceremony took everyone at the picnic by surprise."
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.
Unannounced inspections of licensed child care providers are standard procedure and do not necessarily indicate that a problem is suspected.
From Seattle Times • Sep. 16, 2023
Unannounced interventions -- and there have been a few recently according to traders -- prevent episodes of excessive strength while allowing gradual gains, Goldman Sachs wrote, predicting "continued, gradual shekel appreciation".
From Reuters • Nov. 9, 2021
Unannounced inspections of the trust's maternity services and services for children and young people were carried out in July.
From BBC • Oct. 15, 2021
Unannounced visitors are not welcome at the fenced-off, secretive site, where more than 2,000 MEK members live.
From The Guardian • Jul. 15, 2019
Unannounced, I entered another, and a larger room.
From Poor Miss Finch by Collins, Wilkie
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.
