unexpected
Americanadjective
adjective
Related Words
See sudden.
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of unexpected
Explanation
Use the adjective unexpected to describe something that takes you by surprise. An unexpected knock on your front door might make you jump. When you don't anticipate something, and have no clue that it's coming, you can call it unexpected. A successful surprise party is always unexpected, and an unexpected visitor can be exciting or inconvenient, depending on who it is. If you expect an event, you know it's going to occur, but if it's unexpected, it seems to come from nowhere. The Latin root is expectare, "await, look out for, desire, or hope."
Vocabulary lists containing unexpected
This Week in Words: Current Events Vocabulary for April 22–April 28, 2023
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Week 5: Scientific Viewpoints
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Strange
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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 subtitle, “An Unexpected Archive of Celebrity Portraits,” is stamped on its cover like a travel visa.
From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 17, 2026
It also incorporates a variety of toppings, such as shreds of TJ’s Unexpected Cheddar, dried apple chips with cinnamon, and crunchy pieces of pecan.
From Salon • Nov. 26, 2025
Unexpected strength in the Chinese economy could intensify one of the stock market’s biggest risks, a shift that could make shares more volatile, and investors more hesitant, over the coming months.
From Barron's • Oct. 20, 2025
Unexpected adverse weather has proved problematic for organisers since, with heavy rainfall on the day of the opening ceremony raising pollution levels.
From BBC • Jul. 30, 2024
“Yes. Unexpected similes can carry the power of surprise. They’re refreshing, aren’t they?”
From "Chasing Vermeer" by Blue Balliett
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.
