unawares
[adverb]
Synonyms:
- by surprise, off guard, suddenly, unexpectedly
- unknowingly, accidentally, by accident, inadvertently, unwittingly

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Related Idioms: like a bolt from the blue, off base, out of a clear sky, out of the blue
Related Words: unprepared, unready

[TahlilGaran] English Synonym Dictionary ▲

un‧a‧wares /ˌʌnəˈweəz $ -ˈwerz/ adverb

1. take/catch somebody unawares if something takes you unawares, it happens when you are not expecting it and are not prepared:
The question caught me completely unawares.

2. formal without noticing:
We had walked unawares over the border.

[TahlilGaran] Dictionary of Contemporary English ▲