suddenly
Britishadverb
Explanation
If you're walking on a crowded street and you stop suddenly — abruptly and without warning — somebody walking behind you may bump into you. If you experience love at first sight, you've suddenly fallen in love. If you're driving at night and a deer jumps out in front of you, you might suddenly have to swerve to avoid it. Suddenly is the kind of adverb you might use a lot if you're describing the plot of an action movie, a mystery novel, or any story in which lots of unexpected things happen.
Vocabulary lists containing suddenly
A Need for Speed: Synonyms for "Fast"
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Beowulf vocabulary
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Cormac McCarthy's "The Road"
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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.
The discovery centers on the galaxy J1007+3540, where scientists observed a supermassive black hole at its core suddenly restarting powerful jets after remaining inactive for almost 100 million years.
From Science Daily • Apr. 13, 2026
Another problem: Derivatives the firm had sold to hedge against price moves for cargoes from the Middle East were suddenly a bet against the crude market just as it was exploding higher.
From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 12, 2026
It happened that the Epstein files were released just as I set off for Carmarthen, and the work suddenly felt even more urgent.
From BBC • Apr. 12, 2026
Everything’s already awry when, suddenly, a dinosaur walks past their window.
From Salon • Apr. 12, 2026
“Oh, a lot happened, a whole lifetime of happenings. But I think I shall keep it short. I am suddenly rather tired. And you must be too. Well, here is how the story ends…”
From "An Elephant in the Garden" by Michael Morpurgo
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.
