taken off guard

ADJECTIVE

unprepared

Synonyms

STRONGEST

unaware vulnerable

WEAK

ad-lib caught off guard ill-considered impromptu improvised napping not prepared off the cuff off the top of one's head offhand played by ear spontaneous surprised unexpected unplanned unready unrehearsed unschooled unskilled untrained winged

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

"We were taken off guard that it seemed to be working on time scales similar to that of silicon photodetectors."

From Science Daily • Mar. 4, 2026

“I was completely taken off guard, but it was a good harbinger of what was to come.”

From Seattle Times • Nov. 19, 2023

“So I suppose I was a little taken off guard at first. But the Amoeba folks are really cool, so I guess I just kinda rolled with it.”

From Washington Post • Jan. 5, 2023

“I was taken off guard, and I had to process it a bit,” McCarthy said.

From New York Times • Nov. 7, 2019

“Oh,” Ma exclaims, taken off guard by the gesture.

From "Kwame Crashes the Underworld" by Craig Kofi Farmer

taken off guard

Example Sentences

Related Words