all of a sudden

1. Entirely without warning, abruptly, as in All of a sudden the lights went out. In Shakespeare's day the common phrase was of a sudden, the word all being added in the late 1600s. Also see all at once, def. 2.

Example Sentences

But all of a sudden, federal immigration agents may appear.

From Los Angeles Times

And then all of a sudden I got the call from my agent and they said, “You have to read it now and make a decision by Monday.”

From Los Angeles Times

"Pretty much 75% of our earnings is through whelks, so you take that away and all of a sudden you're struggling," explained Mr Cooper.

From BBC

“And all of a sudden our lives are on hold again, at the mercy of these people that think I have no right to be here.”

From Los Angeles Times

"You'd have no chance of lining him up - he was wide down the leg side, wide down the off side, half-volley, bouncer and then all of a sudden right in the perfect zone."

From BBC

Related Words

• precipitously www.thesaurus.com
• suddenly 
• unexpectedly