unawares

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.

Europeans were left scrambling for a seat at the table last week, after they were seemingly caught unawares when the US draft peace plan was presented.

From BBC • Nov. 24, 2025

The entire plot is driven by Blackthorne’s revelation that even the Christian lords’ European allies are secretly building an army with which they intend to take all of Japan unawares.

From New York Times • Apr. 23, 2024

Because forecasters were caught unawares, so were local residents, who only expected perhaps a Category 2 storm.

From Scientific American • Oct. 25, 2023

Or perhaps radioactivity would bring about a dystopian nightmare: As Rutherford liked to say, "Some fool in a laboratory might blow up the universe unawares" by triggering a planetary chain reaction.

From Salon • Aug. 12, 2023

The British announcer, caught unawares, broke back in, excited and relieved, “That was Herr Hitler! The games are open!”

From "The Boys in the Boat: Nine Americans and Their Epic Quest for Gold at the 1936 Berlin Olympics" by Daniel James Brown