"out of the blue" meaning in English

{
  "etymology_text": "Short for out of the blue sky, likening an unexpected event to lightning or rain coming suddenly from a cloudless sky.",
  "head_templates": [
    {
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "prepositional phrase",
        "head": ""
      },
      "expansion": "out of the blue",
      "name": "head"
    },
    {
      "args": {},
      "expansion": "out of the blue",
      "name": "en-PP"
    }
  ],
  "lang": "English",
  "lang_code": "en",
  "pos": "prep_phrase",
  "senses": [
    {
      "categories": [
        {
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "English entries with incorrect language header",
          "parents": [
            "Entries with incorrect language header",
            "Entry maintenance"
          ],
          "source": "w"
        },
        {
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "German links with redundant wikilinks",
          "parents": [
            "Links with redundant wikilinks",
            "Entry maintenance"
          ],
          "source": "w"
        },
        {
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "Mandarin terms with redundant transliterations",
          "parents": [
            "Terms with redundant transliterations",
            "Entry maintenance"
          ],
          "source": "w"
        },
        {
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "Serbo-Croatian terms with redundant script codes",
          "parents": [
            "Terms with redundant script codes",
            "Entry maintenance"
          ],
          "source": "w"
        }
      ],
      "examples": [
        {
          "text": "After I hadn’t heard from her in six months, she called me out of the blue to meet for lunch."
        },
        {
          "text": "I really can't understand how something like this could simply pop up out of the blue."
        }
      ],
      "glosses": [
        "unexpectedly; without warning or preparation."
      ],
      "id": "en-out_of_the_blue-en-prep_phrase-Y2IEjUjL",
      "links": [
        [
          "unexpectedly",
          "unexpectedly"
        ],
        [
          "warning",
          "warning"
        ],
        [
          "preparation",
          "preparation"
        ]
      ],
      "raw_glosses": [
        "(idiomatic) unexpectedly; without warning or preparation."
      ],
      "related": [
        {
          "word": "next thing one knows"
        },
        {
          "word": "out of nowhere"
        },
        {
          "word": "thin air"
        },
        {
          "word": "bolt from the blue"
        }
      ],
      "tags": [
        "idiomatic"
      ],
      "translations": [
        {
          "code": "cmn",
          "lang": "Chinese Mandarin",
          "roman": "chūqíbùyì",
          "sense": "unexpectedly",
          "word": "出其不意"
        },
        {
          "code": "cmn",
          "lang": "Chinese Mandarin",
          "roman": "chūhūyìliào",
          "sense": "unexpectedly",
          "word": "出乎意料"
        },
        {
          "code": "cs",
          "lang": "Czech",
          "sense": "unexpectedly",
          "word": "zčistajasna"
        },
        {
          "code": "da",
          "lang": "Danish",
          "sense": "unexpectedly",
          "word": "ud af det blå"
        },
        {
          "code": "nl",
          "lang": "Dutch",
          "sense": "unexpectedly",
          "word": "uit het niets"
        },
        {
          "code": "nl",
          "lang": "Dutch",
          "sense": "unexpectedly",
          "word": "zomaar"
        },
        {
          "code": "fi",
          "lang": "Finnish",
          "sense": "unexpectedly",
          "word": "yllättäen"
        },
        {
          "code": "fi",
          "lang": "Finnish",
          "sense": "unexpectedly",
          "word": "kuin salama kirkkaalta taivaalta"
        },
        {
          "code": "fr",
          "english": "like a hair in the soup",
          "lang": "French",
          "sense": "unexpectedly",
          "word": "comme un cheveu sur la soupe"
        },
        {
          "code": "fr",
          "english": "like a dog in a bowling game",
          "lang": "French",
          "sense": "unexpectedly",
          "word": "comme un chien dans un jeu de quilles"
        },
        {
          "code": "fr",
          "lang": "French",
          "sense": "unexpectedly",
          "word": "de nulle part"
        },
        {
          "code": "de",
          "lang": "German",
          "sense": "unexpectedly",
          "word": "(wie) aus heiterem Himmel"
        },
        {
          "code": "de",
          "lang": "German",
          "sense": "unexpectedly",
          "word": "(wie) aus blauem Himmel"
        },
        {
          "code": "de",
          "lang": "German",
          "sense": "unexpectedly",
          "word": "(wie) aus dem Nichts"
        },
        {
          "code": "de",
          "lang": "German",
          "sense": "unexpectedly",
          "word": "aus dem Blauen heraus"
        },
        {
          "code": "hu",
          "lang": "Hungarian",
          "sense": "unexpectedly",
          "word": "a semmiből"
        },
        {
          "code": "hu",
          "lang": "Hungarian",
          "sense": "unexpectedly",
          "word": "hirtelen"
        },
        {
          "code": "hu",
          "lang": "Hungarian",
          "sense": "unexpectedly",
          "word": "váratlanul"
        },
        {
          "code": "hu",
          "lang": "Hungarian",
          "sense": "unexpectedly",
          "word": "meglepetésszerűen"
        },
        {
          "code": "is",
          "english": "like thunder from a clear sky",
          "lang": "Icelandic",
          "sense": "unexpectedly",
          "word": "eins og þruma úr heiðskíru lofti"
        },
        {
          "code": "is",
          "english": "like the devil from the sheep's leg",
          "lang": "Icelandic",
          "sense": "unexpectedly",
          "word": "eins og skrattinn úr sauðaleggnum"
        },
        {
          "code": "is",
          "lang": "Icelandic",
          "note": "as a hard blow",
          "sense": "unexpectedly",
          "word": "sem reiðarslag"
        },
        {
          "code": "is",
          "english": "like thunder from a blue sky",
          "lang": "Icelandic",
          "sense": "unexpectedly",
          "word": "eins og þruma úr heiðríkju"
        },
        {
          "code": "is",
          "lang": "Icelandic",
          "sense": "unexpectedly",
          "word": "öllum að óvörum"
        },
        {
          "code": "it",
          "lang": "Italian",
          "sense": "unexpectedly",
          "word": "inaspettatamente"
        },
        {
          "code": "it",
          "english": "all of a sudden",
          "lang": "Italian",
          "sense": "unexpectedly",
          "word": "di punto in bianco"
        },
        {
          "code": "it",
          "english": "like a thunder in a clear sky",
          "lang": "Italian",
          "sense": "unexpectedly",
          "word": "come un fulmine a ciel sereno"
        },
        {
          "code": "it",
          "lang": "Italian",
          "sense": "unexpectedly",
          "word": "dal nulla"
        },
        {
          "code": "ja",
          "lang": "Japanese",
          "sense": "unexpectedly",
          "word": "藪から棒"
        },
        {
          "code": "ja",
          "lang": "Japanese",
          "sense": "unexpectedly",
          "word": "出し抜け"
        },
        {
          "code": "ko",
          "lang": "Korean",
          "roman": "gapjagi",
          "sense": "unexpectedly",
          "word": "갑자기"
        },
        {
          "code": "la",
          "lang": "Latin",
          "sense": "unexpectedly",
          "word": "inexspectate"
        },
        {
          "code": "lt",
          "english": "like a thunder in the clear sky",
          "lang": "Lithuanian",
          "sense": "unexpectedly",
          "word": "lyg perkūnas iš giedro dangaus"
        },
        {
          "code": "mi",
          "lang": "Maori",
          "sense": "unexpectedly",
          "word": "matawhawhati"
        },
        {
          "code": "mi",
          "lang": "Maori",
          "sense": "unexpectedly",
          "word": "whāia ka/kua (nei)"
        },
        {
          "code": "no",
          "lang": "Norwegian",
          "sense": "unexpectedly",
          "word": "ut av det blå"
        },
        {
          "code": "no",
          "lang": "Norwegian",
          "sense": "unexpectedly",
          "word": "som lyn fra klar himmel"
        },
        {
          "code": "pl",
          "lang": "Polish",
          "sense": "unexpectedly",
          "word": "jak grom z jasnego nieba"
        },
        {
          "code": "pl",
          "lang": "Polish",
          "sense": "unexpectedly",
          "word": "ni stąd, ni zowąd"
        },
        {
          "code": "pt",
          "english": "out of nowhere",
          "lang": "Portuguese",
          "sense": "unexpectedly",
          "word": "do nada"
        },
        {
          "code": "pt",
          "english": "out of the top hat",
          "lang": "Portuguese",
          "sense": "unexpectedly",
          "word": "da cartola"
        },
        {
          "code": "pt",
          "lang": "Portuguese",
          "sense": "unexpectedly",
          "word": "à toa"
        },
        {
          "code": "ro",
          "lang": "Romanian",
          "sense": "unexpectedly",
          "word": "din senin"
        },
        {
          "code": "ru",
          "english": "like a thunder in the clear sky",
          "lang": "Russian",
          "sense": "unexpectedly",
          "word": "как гром среди ясного неба"
        },
        {
          "code": "ru",
          "english": "like snow onto the head",
          "lang": "Russian",
          "sense": "unexpectedly",
          "word": "как снег на голову"
        },
        {
          "code": "sh",
          "english": "like a thunder from clear skies",
          "lang": "Serbo-Croatian",
          "sense": "unexpectedly",
          "tags": [
            "Cyrillic"
          ],
          "word": "ка̏о гро̑м из ве̏дра не̏ба"
        },
        {
          "code": "sh",
          "lang": "Serbo-Croatian",
          "sense": "unexpectedly",
          "tags": [
            "Roman"
          ],
          "word": "kȁo grȏm iz vȅdra nȅba"
        },
        {
          "code": "es",
          "lang": "Spanish",
          "sense": "unexpectedly",
          "word": "de la nada"
        },
        {
          "code": "es",
          "lang": "Spanish",
          "sense": "unexpectedly",
          "word": "de repente"
        },
        {
          "code": "es",
          "lang": "Spanish",
          "sense": "unexpectedly",
          "word": "de sopetón"
        },
        {
          "code": "sv",
          "english": "like a lightning bolt out of a clear sky",
          "lang": "Swedish",
          "sense": "unexpectedly",
          "word": "som en blixt från klar himmel"
        },
        {
          "code": "uk",
          "lang": "Ukrainian",
          "roman": "jak snih na holovu",
          "sense": "unexpectedly",
          "word": "як сніг на голову"
        },
        {
          "code": "uk",
          "lang": "Ukrainian",
          "roman": "jak hrim z jasnoho neba",
          "sense": "unexpectedly",
          "word": "як грім з ясного неба"
        },
        {
          "code": "vi",
          "lang": "Vietnamese",
          "sense": "unexpectedly",
          "word": "đang không"
        }
      ]
    }
  ],
  "sounds": [
    {
      "ipa": "/aʊt ɒv ðə bluː/"
    },
    {
      "audio": "En-au-out of the blue.ogg",
      "mp3_url": "https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/transcoded/1/1e/En-au-out_of_the_blue.ogg/En-au-out_of_the_blue.ogg.mp3",
      "ogg_url": "https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/1/1e/En-au-out_of_the_blue.ogg",
      "tags": [
        "Australia"
      ],
      "text": "Audio (AU)"
    }
  ],
  "word": "out of the blue"
}

{
  "etymology_text": "Short for out of the blue sky, likening an unexpected event to lightning or rain coming suddenly from a cloudless sky.",
  "head_templates": [
    {
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "prepositional phrase",
        "head": ""
      },
      "expansion": "out of the blue",
      "name": "head"
    },
    {
      "args": {},
      "expansion": "out of the blue",
      "name": "en-PP"
    }
  ],
  "lang": "English",
  "lang_code": "en",
  "pos": "prep_phrase",
  "related": [
    {
      "word": "next thing one knows"
    },
    {
      "word": "out of nowhere"
    },
    {
      "word": "thin air"
    },
    {
      "word": "bolt from the blue"
    }
  ],
  "senses": [
    {
      "categories": [
        "English entries with incorrect language header",
        "English idioms",
        "English lemmas",
        "English multiword terms",
        "English prepositional phrases",
        "English terms with IPA pronunciation",
        "English terms with audio links",
        "German links with redundant wikilinks",
        "Mandarin terms with redundant transliterations",
        "Serbo-Croatian terms with redundant script codes"
      ],
      "examples": [
        {
          "text": "After I hadn’t heard from her in six months, she called me out of the blue to meet for lunch."
        },
        {
          "text": "I really can't understand how something like this could simply pop up out of the blue."
        }
      ],
      "glosses": [
        "unexpectedly; without warning or preparation."
      ],
      "links": [
        [
          "unexpectedly",
          "unexpectedly"
        ],
        [
          "warning",
          "warning"
        ],
        [
          "preparation",
          "preparation"
        ]
      ],
      "raw_glosses": [
        "(idiomatic) unexpectedly; without warning or preparation."
      ],
      "tags": [
        "idiomatic"
      ]
    }
  ],
  "sounds": [
    {
      "ipa": "/aʊt ɒv ðə bluː/"
    },
    {
      "audio": "En-au-out of the blue.ogg",
      "mp3_url": "https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/transcoded/1/1e/En-au-out_of_the_blue.ogg/En-au-out_of_the_blue.ogg.mp3",
      "ogg_url": "https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/1/1e/En-au-out_of_the_blue.ogg",
      "tags": [
        "Australia"
      ],
      "text": "Audio (AU)"
    }
  ],
  "translations": [
    {
      "code": "cmn",
      "lang": "Chinese Mandarin",
      "roman": "chūqíbùyì",
      "sense": "unexpectedly",
      "word": "出其不意"
    },
    {
      "code": "cmn",
      "lang": "Chinese Mandarin",
      "roman": "chūhūyìliào",
      "sense": "unexpectedly",
      "word": "出乎意料"
    },
    {
      "code": "cs",
      "lang": "Czech",
      "sense": "unexpectedly",
      "word": "zčistajasna"
    },
    {
      "code": "da",
      "lang": "Danish",
      "sense": "unexpectedly",
      "word": "ud af det blå"
    },
    {
      "code": "nl",
      "lang": "Dutch",
      "sense": "unexpectedly",
      "word": "uit het niets"
    },
    {
      "code": "nl",
      "lang": "Dutch",
      "sense": "unexpectedly",
      "word": "zomaar"
    },
    {
      "code": "fi",
      "lang": "Finnish",
      "sense": "unexpectedly",
      "word": "yllättäen"
    },
    {
      "code": "fi",
      "lang": "Finnish",
      "sense": "unexpectedly",
      "word": "kuin salama kirkkaalta taivaalta"
    },
    {
      "code": "fr",
      "english": "like a hair in the soup",
      "lang": "French",
      "sense": "unexpectedly",
      "word": "comme un cheveu sur la soupe"
    },
    {
      "code": "fr",
      "english": "like a dog in a bowling game",
      "lang": "French",
      "sense": "unexpectedly",
      "word": "comme un chien dans un jeu de quilles"
    },
    {
      "code": "fr",
      "lang": "French",
      "sense": "unexpectedly",
      "word": "de nulle part"
    },
    {
      "code": "de",
      "lang": "German",
      "sense": "unexpectedly",
      "word": "(wie) aus heiterem Himmel"
    },
    {
      "code": "de",
      "lang": "German",
      "sense": "unexpectedly",
      "word": "(wie) aus blauem Himmel"
    },
    {
      "code": "de",
      "lang": "German",
      "sense": "unexpectedly",
      "word": "(wie) aus dem Nichts"
    },
    {
      "code": "de",
      "lang": "German",
      "sense": "unexpectedly",
      "word": "aus dem Blauen heraus"
    },
    {
      "code": "hu",
      "lang": "Hungarian",
      "sense": "unexpectedly",
      "word": "a semmiből"
    },
    {
      "code": "hu",
      "lang": "Hungarian",
      "sense": "unexpectedly",
      "word": "hirtelen"
    },
    {
      "code": "hu",
      "lang": "Hungarian",
      "sense": "unexpectedly",
      "word": "váratlanul"
    },
    {
      "code": "hu",
      "lang": "Hungarian",
      "sense": "unexpectedly",
      "word": "meglepetésszerűen"
    },
    {
      "code": "is",
      "english": "like thunder from a clear sky",
      "lang": "Icelandic",
      "sense": "unexpectedly",
      "word": "eins og þruma úr heiðskíru lofti"
    },
    {
      "code": "is",
      "english": "like the devil from the sheep's leg",
      "lang": "Icelandic",
      "sense": "unexpectedly",
      "word": "eins og skrattinn úr sauðaleggnum"
    },
    {
      "code": "is",
      "lang": "Icelandic",
      "note": "as a hard blow",
      "sense": "unexpectedly",
      "word": "sem reiðarslag"
    },
    {
      "code": "is",
      "english": "like thunder from a blue sky",
      "lang": "Icelandic",
      "sense": "unexpectedly",
      "word": "eins og þruma úr heiðríkju"
    },
    {
      "code": "is",
      "lang": "Icelandic",
      "sense": "unexpectedly",
      "word": "öllum að óvörum"
    },
    {
      "code": "it",
      "lang": "Italian",
      "sense": "unexpectedly",
      "word": "inaspettatamente"
    },
    {
      "code": "it",
      "english": "all of a sudden",
      "lang": "Italian",
      "sense": "unexpectedly",
      "word": "di punto in bianco"
    },
    {
      "code": "it",
      "english": "like a thunder in a clear sky",
      "lang": "Italian",
      "sense": "unexpectedly",
      "word": "come un fulmine a ciel sereno"
    },
    {
      "code": "it",
      "lang": "Italian",
      "sense": "unexpectedly",
      "word": "dal nulla"
    },
    {
      "code": "ja",
      "lang": "Japanese",
      "sense": "unexpectedly",
      "word": "藪から棒"
    },
    {
      "code": "ja",
      "lang": "Japanese",
      "sense": "unexpectedly",
      "word": "出し抜け"
    },
    {
      "code": "ko",
      "lang": "Korean",
      "roman": "gapjagi",
      "sense": "unexpectedly",
      "word": "갑자기"
    },
    {
      "code": "la",
      "lang": "Latin",
      "sense": "unexpectedly",
      "word": "inexspectate"
    },
    {
      "code": "lt",
      "english": "like a thunder in the clear sky",
      "lang": "Lithuanian",
      "sense": "unexpectedly",
      "word": "lyg perkūnas iš giedro dangaus"
    },
    {
      "code": "mi",
      "lang": "Maori",
      "sense": "unexpectedly",
      "word": "matawhawhati"
    },
    {
      "code": "mi",
      "lang": "Maori",
      "sense": "unexpectedly",
      "word": "whāia ka/kua (nei)"
    },
    {
      "code": "no",
      "lang": "Norwegian",
      "sense": "unexpectedly",
      "word": "ut av det blå"
    },
    {
      "code": "no",
      "lang": "Norwegian",
      "sense": "unexpectedly",
      "word": "som lyn fra klar himmel"
    },
    {
      "code": "pl",
      "lang": "Polish",
      "sense": "unexpectedly",
      "word": "jak grom z jasnego nieba"
    },
    {
      "code": "pl",
      "lang": "Polish",
      "sense": "unexpectedly",
      "word": "ni stąd, ni zowąd"
    },
    {
      "code": "pt",
      "english": "out of nowhere",
      "lang": "Portuguese",
      "sense": "unexpectedly",
      "word": "do nada"
    },
    {
      "code": "pt",
      "english": "out of the top hat",
      "lang": "Portuguese",
      "sense": "unexpectedly",
      "word": "da cartola"
    },
    {
      "code": "pt",
      "lang": "Portuguese",
      "sense": "unexpectedly",
      "word": "à toa"
    },
    {
      "code": "ro",
      "lang": "Romanian",
      "sense": "unexpectedly",
      "word": "din senin"
    },
    {
      "code": "ru",
      "english": "like a thunder in the clear sky",
      "lang": "Russian",
      "sense": "unexpectedly",
      "word": "как гром среди ясного неба"
    },
    {
      "code": "ru",
      "english": "like snow onto the head",
      "lang": "Russian",
      "sense": "unexpectedly",
      "word": "как снег на голову"
    },
    {
      "code": "sh",
      "english": "like a thunder from clear skies",
      "lang": "Serbo-Croatian",
      "sense": "unexpectedly",
      "tags": [
        "Cyrillic"
      ],
      "word": "ка̏о гро̑м из ве̏дра не̏ба"
    },
    {
      "code": "sh",
      "lang": "Serbo-Croatian",
      "sense": "unexpectedly",
      "tags": [
        "Roman"
      ],
      "word": "kȁo grȏm iz vȅdra nȅba"
    },
    {
      "code": "es",
      "lang": "Spanish",
      "sense": "unexpectedly",
      "word": "de la nada"
    },
    {
      "code": "es",
      "lang": "Spanish",
      "sense": "unexpectedly",
      "word": "de repente"
    },
    {
      "code": "es",
      "lang": "Spanish",
      "sense": "unexpectedly",
      "word": "de sopetón"
    },
    {
      "code": "sv",
      "english": "like a lightning bolt out of a clear sky",
      "lang": "Swedish",
      "sense": "unexpectedly",
      "word": "som en blixt från klar himmel"
    },
    {
      "code": "uk",
      "lang": "Ukrainian",
      "roman": "jak snih na holovu",
      "sense": "unexpectedly",
      "word": "як сніг на голову"
    },
    {
      "code": "uk",
      "lang": "Ukrainian",
      "roman": "jak hrim z jasnoho neba",
      "sense": "unexpectedly",
      "word": "як грім з ясного неба"
    },
    {
      "code": "vi",
      "lang": "Vietnamese",
      "sense": "unexpectedly",
      "word": "đang không"
    }
  ],
  "word": "out of the blue"
}