Dictionary.com
Thesaurus.com
Showing results for all of a sudden. Search instead for all+of+a+sudden.
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.

"We shouldn't expect Hungary to become super pro-Ukraine membership all of a sudden," said a second senior EU diplomat.

From Barron's • Apr. 13, 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

“It sucks when Sunday morning chocolate chip pancakes for the kiddos all of a sudden ends up in the ‘discretionary spending’ category of the budget.”

From MarketWatch • Apr. 3, 2026

“What happens when all of a sudden they have big gaps in their production?”

From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 1, 2026

“Hey, how come you’re always so mean to Tyler?” she asks all of a sudden.

From "A Good Kind of Trouble" by Lisa Moore Ramée

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.