unannounced
Britishadjective
Explanation
Anything unannounced is a total surprise. If your neighbor frequently barges into your house unannounced, especially in the middle of dinner, you might want to start locking your doors. When an organization doesn't make a formal statement before doing something, it's often described as unannounced, like the unannounced change in the ingredients of your favorite soda or the unannounced delay of your flight to Hawaii. You can talk about anything unexpected using this adjective: "Their unannounced marriage ceremony took everyone at the picnic by surprise."
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.
German Chancellor Friedrich Merz arrived in Ukraine's capital Kyiv on Sunday on an unannounced visit in a show of support for the country in its war with Russia.
From Barron's ● Oct. 4, 2026
When a child is placed on the CPR social workers will typically carry out unannounced visits to witness the family in a regular day-to-day setting.
From BBC ● Sep. 9, 2026
When the CIA dropped in unannounced at the headquarters of Steve Jobs’s new computer company, NeXT, the Cold War was in full swing.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 19, 2026
Walking through the door unannounced yelling “Hi, family!” across the living room.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 6, 2026
Anyway, I know that somewhere I once read that Mahalia said that every time she can, she will slip unannounced into some little ghetto storefront church and sing with her people.
From "The Autobiography of Malcolm X" by Alex Malcolm X;Hailey
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.
