unawares
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Unawares — Un a*wares , adv. Without design or preparation; suddenly; without premeditation, unexpectedly. Mercies lighting unawares. J. H. Newman. [1913 Webster] Lest unawares we lose This our high place, our sanctuary, our hill. Milton. [1913 Webster] {At … The Collaborative International Dictionary of English
unawares — [un΄ə werz′] adv. 1. without knowing or being aware; unintentionally 2. unexpectedly; suddenly; by surprise [to sneak up on someone unawares] … English World dictionary
unawares — (adv.) 1530s, without being aware, from UN (Cf. un ) (1) not + AWARE (Cf. aware) + adverbial genitive s. Meaning without being noticed is recorded from 1660s. Form unaware is recorded from 1590s … Etymology dictionary
unawares — [adv] without warning; suddenly aback, abruptly, accidentally, by accident, by mistake, by surprise, carelessly, ignorantly, inadvertently, mistakenly, off guard, short, sudden, surprisingly, unconsciously, unexpectedly, unintentionally,… … New thesaurus
unawares — (also unaware) ► ADVERB ▪ so as to surprise; unexpectedly … English terms dictionary
unawares — un|a|wares [ˌʌnəˈweəz US ˈwerz] adv 1.) take/catch sb 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… … Dictionary of contemporary English
unawares — [[t]ʌ̱nəwe͟ə(r)z[/t]] PHRASE: V inflects If something catches you unawares or takes you unawares, it happens when you are not expecting it. Investors and currency dealers were caught completely unawares by the Bundesbank s action... The suspect… … English dictionary
unawares — unaware, unawares 1. The adjective unaware is used predicatively (i.e. after a verb) and is followed either by of or by a that clause: • She still seemed unaware of the peril that she was in M. Lide, 1991 • Quite unaware that he had a month s… … Modern English usage
unawares — adverb 1 take/catch sb unawares to happen or to do something in a way that someone was not expecting and so was not prepared for: Caught unawares like that, I was unable to think of an excuse. 2 formal without noticing: We had walked unawares… … Longman dictionary of contemporary English
unawares — adv. unexpectedly to catch smb. unawares * * * [ˌʌnə weəz] [ unexpectedly ] to catch smb. unawares … Combinatory dictionary
