Unexpected

//ʌnɪkˈspɛktɪd// adj, noun

adj, noun ·Moderate ·High school level

Definitions

Noun
  1. 1
    Someone or something unexpected. rare
Adjective
  1. 1
    Not expected, anticipated or foreseen.

    "She was a fat, round little woman, richly apparelled in velvet and lace, […]; and the way she laughed, cackling like a hen, the way she talked to the waiters and the maid,[…]—all these unexpected phenomena impelled one to hysterical mirth, and made one class her with such immortally ludicrous types as Ally Sloper, the Widow Twankey, or Miss Moucher."

Adjective
  1. 1
    not expected or anticipated wordnet

Synonyms

All synonyms
unannouncedunforeseenaberrantabruptaccidentaladventitious

Example

More examples

"I will be able to see you tomorrow unless something unexpected turns up."

Etymology

From un- + expected.

Related phrases

expect the unexpectedsudden unexpected death syndromeunexpected hanging paradoxunexpected red theorybolt from blueout of blue

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