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出人意料 (chū rén yì liào) — unexpected, surprising

Definition

A formal, written phrase meaning 'unexpected / surprising', describing something that goes beyond what people predicted. Stronger and more literary than 突然, and more neutral than 喜出望外 (which implies delighted surprise).

phrase
unexpectedsurprising

Examples

  • 出人意料。
    Zhè ge jié guǒ zhēn shì chū rén yì liào.
    This result is really unexpected.
  • 出人意料。
    Tā chū rén yì liào dì jù jué le nà fèn gōng zuò.
    He unexpectedly turned down that job.
  • ，出人意料。
    Shuí yě méi xiǎng dào, zhè cì bǐ sài chū rén yì liào dì yíng le.
    No one expected that we would unexpectedly win this competition.

Origin

Characters in this word

Two or more meaningful parts placed together so that their meanings combine into a new one.

出 combines 止 (foot) and 凵 (cave) to show a foot stepping out of a cave.

Open 出 →

A drawing of the thing itself, worn down over three thousand years into a few strokes.

The shape of 人 shows a side view of a standing person, with an arm and a leg.

Open 人 →

No reliable origin is recorded for this character.

Open 意 →

Two or more meaningful parts placed together so that their meanings combine into a new one.

料 combines 米 (rice) with 斗 (a dipper), showing rice being measured or gauged.

Open 料 →
Appears in
HSK 3.0 Level 7-9Abstract ConceptsIdioms & Set Phrases

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