sudden
[ suhd-n ]
/ ˈsʌd n /
adjective
adverb
Literary. suddenly.
noun
Obsolete. an unexpected occasion or occurrence.
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RELATED WORDS
unusual, rapid, unforeseen, precipitous, hasty, abrupt, immediate, quick, swift, acute, expeditious, fast, flash, fleet, headlong, hurried, impetuous, impromptu, impulsive, precipitate
Nearby words
- sudation,
- sudatorium,
- sudatory,
- sudbury,
- sudd,
- sudden adult death syndrome,
- sudden death,
- sudden infant death syndrome,
- suddenly,
- sudeck's atrophy
Idioms
all of a sudden, without warning; unexpectedly; suddenly.Also on a sudden.
Origin of sudden
SYNONYMS FOR sudden
1, 2. unforeseen, unanticipated. Sudden, unexpected, abrupt describe acts, events, or conditions for which there has been no preparation or gradual approach. Sudden refers to the quickness of an occurrence, although the event may have been expected: a sudden change in the weather. Unexpected emphasizes the lack of preparedness for what occurs or appears: an unexpected crisis. Abrupt characterizes something involving a swift adjustment; the effect is often unpleasant, unfavorable, or the cause of dismay: He had an abrupt change in manner. The road came to an abrupt end.
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019
Examples from the Web for sudden
sudden
/ (ˈsʌdən) /
adjective
occurring or performed quickly and without warning
marked by haste; abrupt
rare rash; precipitate
noun
archaic an abrupt occurrence or the occasion of such an occurrence (in the phrase on a sudden)
all of a sudden without warning; unexpectedly
adverb
mainly poetic without warning; suddenly
Word Origin for sudden
C13: via French from Late Latin subitāneus, from Latin subitus unexpected, from subīre to happen unexpectedly, from sub- secretly + īre to go
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition
© William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
sudden
late 13c., perhaps via Anglo-French sodein, from Old French subdain "immediate, sudden," from Vulgar Latin *subitanus, variant of Latin subitaneus "sudden," from subitus "come or go up stealthily," from sub "up to" + ire "come, go." Phrase all of a sudden first attested 1680s, earlier of a sudayn (1590s), upon the soden (1550s). Sudden death, tie-breakers in sports, first recorded 1927; earlier in reference to coin tosses (1834).
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
sudden
see all of a sudden.
The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary
Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.