surprisingly

surprisingly — adverb

1. more than you would usually expect; to a degree that makes you feel surprised —

1.adverbA2
Definition

more than you would usually expect; to a degree that makes you feel surprised — used before an adjective or another adverb to say something has a quality to an unusual extent.

Example

The maths exam was surprisingly easy for a final-year paper.

surprisingly + easy (adjective)

Haruto speaks French surprisingly well after only six months of lessons.

surprisingly + well (adverb)

Common collocations
  • surprisingly easy
  • surprisingly good
  • surprisingly well
  • surprisingly difficult
  • surprisingly popular
Synonyms
  • astonishingly

    stronger; suggests greater shock or amazement

  • unexpectedly

    focuses on the lack of warning rather than the degree of surprise

  • remarkably

    implies something is worth noticing or commenting on; slightly more formal

Antonyms
  • unsurprisingly

    in a way that is expected; the direct opposite of 'surprisingly'

Grammar Patterns

surprisingly + adjective/adverb

Usage Note

Frequently placed directly before the adjective or adverb it modifies: a surprisingly simple solution; she sings surprisingly well. Do not confuse this use with the sentence-adverb use (sense 2), where surprisingly begins a clause and means 'it is surprising that'.

Common Mistakes

The test was surprising easy.
The test was surprisingly easy.
'surprising' is an adjective; you need the adverb 'surprisingly' to modify 'easy'.

2. used to show that you find the whole situation unexpected; it is surprising that

2.adverbB1
Definition

used to show that you find the whole situation unexpected; it is surprising that something happened or is true — placed at the beginning of a sentence to comment on the information that follows.

Example

Surprisingly, none of the passengers were injured when the bus skidded off the road.

sentence adverb at start of clause

Surprisingly, the old musician agreed to perform at the school talent show.

Common collocations
  • not surprisingly
  • unsurprisingly
  • perhaps surprisingly
  • somewhat surprisingly
  • surprisingly enough
Synonyms
  • astonishingly

    stronger emotional weight; suggests shock rather than mild surprise

  • incredibly

    suggests something is hard to believe; informal

  • unexpectedly

    focuses on the lack of prediction rather than the speaker's reaction

Antonyms
  • unsurprisingly

    the most direct antonym; 'not surprisingly' is a common alternative

  • predictably

    focuses on the outcome being foreseeable

Grammar Patterns

Surprisingly, + [clause]

Usage Note

When used as a sentence adverb, 'surprisingly' usually appears at the start of a clause, set off by a comma. It can also appear mid-sentence ('The result, surprisingly, was a tie') or at the end ('She passed the exam, surprisingly.'). The negative form 'not surprisingly' or 'unsurprisingly' is very common and means 'in a way that is expected'.

Common Mistakes

Surprisingly he arrived on time.' (no comma)
Surprisingly, he arrived on time.
a comma usually follows a sentence adverb at the start of a clause.

Word family

Synonym discussion

Sense: adverb/1

All four words describe something outside normal expectations, but they differ in intensity and focus. 'Surprisingly' is the most neutral — it simply says something defied your expectations. 'Astonishingly' is stronger, suggesting genuine shock or amazement: the difference between 'surprisingly warm weather' (a mild contrast to forecasts) and 'astonishingly warm weather' (breaking all records). 'Remarkably' adds a positive note of admiration or notice-worthiness — a 'remarkably clear explanation' is both unexpected and impressive. 'Unexpectedly' focuses purely on the lack of prediction, without any judgement of degree: 'He arrived unexpectedly' means no one saw him coming, not that his arrival was extraordinary. 'Incredibly' is more informal and suggests the outcome is hard to believe. Choose 'surprisingly' for everyday contrast with expectations, 'astonishingly' for dramatic emphasis, and 'remarkably' when you want to highlight something admirable.

astonishinglyremarkably ↗unexpectedly ↗incredibly ↗

Common collocations

Adverbs

  • very surprisingly
  • most surprisingly
  • quite surprisingly
  • not surprisingly

Phrases

  • surprisingly enough
  • surprisingly or not
  • not surprisingly

Etymology

LatinOld FrenchEnglish

Formed in English from the verb 'surprise' (from Old French 'surprendre', meaning 'to overtake or seize unexpectedly', itself from Latin 'superprehendere' — 'super' meaning 'over' + 'prehendere' meaning 'to grasp') plus the suffix '-ing' to form the adjective 'surprising', and then the adverb suffix '-ly'.