UNAWARES Synonyms: 19 Similar and Opposite Words

unawares

adverb

ˌən-ə-ˈwerz

as in suddenly

without warning the thunderstorm caught us unawares, and we scrambled to get off the ridge as lightning started to flash

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Recent Examples of unawares Consequently, Baghdad was caught unawares when protests did break out in the capital and in cities such as Mosul in early February, and its initial response was rather panicked. —

Raad Alkadiri, Foreign Affairs, 3 Mar. 2011 In the case of Hungary, EU leaders may have been caught unawares by Orban’s assaults on democracy. —

R. Daniel Kelemen, Foreign Affairs, 25 Aug. 2016 But then, out of nowhere, the chile peppers will catch you unawares and land a solid uppercut to the kisser. —

Tim Carman, Washington Post, 28 Feb. 2024 Pictorial imagery catches us unawares because, as intellectuals, we are trained to analyze text and to treat drawings or photographs as trifling adjuncts. —

Stephen Jay Gould, Discover Magazine, 11 Nov. 2019 See all Example Sentences for unawares