unawares
Americanadverb
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while not aware or conscious of a thing oneself; unknowingly or inadvertently.
-
without warning; by surprise; suddenly; unexpectedly.
to come upon someone unawares.
adverb
-
without prior warning or plan; unexpectedly
she caught him unawares
-
without being aware of or knowing
he lost it unawares
Etymology
Origin of unawares
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.
Angels Unawares depicts 140 refugees packed into a boat.
From Washington Times • Dec. 28, 2020
Unawares, and not hungry, Sam decided not to order anything.
From Washington Post • Dec. 21, 2017
"Taken Unawares: Snapshots of Celebrated People" was a page in the tabloid Penny Pictorial.
From The Guardian • May 21, 2010
ONCE, methought, in the night hours cold, That I saw the moon in my sleep; But as soon as I waken'd, behold Unawares rose the sun from the deep.
From The Poems of Goethe Translated in the original metres by Bowring, Edgar Alfred
Unawares to thyself thou hast forged thine own chains, and riveted them upon thy limbs.
From St. Nicholas Magazine for Boys and Girls, Vol. 5, January 1878, No. 3 by Dodge, Mary Mapes
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.
