adv ·Uncommon ·College level

Definitions

Adverb

1. 1
   Unexpectedly or by surprise. not-comparable

   "Your question catches/takes me unawares, I don't know the answer right now..."

2. 2
   Inadvertently. not-comparable

   "I'm afraid I've taken the wrong coat, unawares."

3. 3
   Without plan or forethought. not-comparable

Adverb

1. 1
   at a disadvantage wordnet
2. 2
   suddenly and unexpectedly wordnet
3. 3
   without forethought or plan; inadvertently wordnet

Synonyms

All synonyms

abackabruptlyaccidentallyall at onceall of a suddenbang

Example

More examples

"George began to climb all unawares."

Etymology

From unaware + -s (adverbial suffix). Attested earlier than unaware.

Data sourced from Wiktionary, WordNet, CMU, and other open linguistic databases. Updated March 2026.