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Showing results for all of a sudden. Search instead for All of a flutter.
Synonyms

all of a sudden

Idioms  

  1. Entirely without warning, abruptly, as in All of a sudden the lights went out. In Shakespeare's day the common phrase was of a sudden, the word all being added in the late 1600s. Also see all at once, def. 2.

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.

“You’ll be reading someone’s Substack or blog post, and all of a sudden in the middle of a perfect paragraph, there’ll be a mistake sitting out there like a sore thumb,” said O’Bryan, 62.

From The Wall Street Journal • May 6, 2026

"You have these peptides that could have a great biological response, but if that biological response only lasts minutes, then all of a sudden you don't have a good therapeutic," Eastman said.

From Science Daily • Apr. 28, 2026

Then all of a sudden, we were brilliant.”

From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 17, 2026

In the full video, Woods appears calm, kneeling on one knee as he tells officers: "I looked down at my phone, and all of a sudden, boom."

From BBC • Apr. 8, 2026

I took a breath, and was about to speak when all of a sudden I did hear something.

From "The Secret History" by Donna Tartt

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.