いきなり
For no reason, Suddenly, All of a sudden
Structure
Explanation
The adverb いきなり, which is almost always written in hiragana, is used to express that something occurred unexpectedly or out of the blue. It carries the nuance of something happening 'suddenly' or 'without any warning'.
Being an adverb, いきなり is typically found either at the very beginning of a sentence or immediately preceding the verb it is modifying.
- いきなり変なことを聞いてすみません。あなたは猫と犬、どっちが好きですか。Sorry to ask you something so out of the blue, but which do you like better, cats or dogs?
- いきなり子供が泣き出したので、みんなびっくりした。Everyone was surprised because the child suddenly burst into tears.
- 静かだった彼がいきなり大声で笑い始めた。He had been quiet, but then he suddenly burst out laughing.
Fun-fact
The origin of いきなり is the kanji compound 行き成り, though this form is hardly ever used today. Its original sense related to the progression or outcome of a situation. Because of this, while it often just means 'suddenly', it can also imply something similar to the English phrase 'all of a sudden things took a turn', highlighting that the way events unfolded was unforeseen or abrupt.
Examples
行き成り大雨が降り出して、傘がなくて濡れてしまった。
It started pouring rain all of a sudden, so I got soaked because I didn't have an umbrella.
彼は行き成り怒り出したので、みんな驚いた。
He got angry out of nowhere, so everyone was surprised.
行き成りパソコンの電源が落ちて、レポートが保存できなかった。
The computer suddenly shut down, and I couldn't save my report.
授業中に行き成り先生に指名されて、頭が真っ白になった。
The teacher called on me out of the blue in the middle of class, and my mind went blank.
静かだと思ったら、犬が行き成り吠え始めた。
Just when I thought it was quiet, the dog suddenly started barking.
行き成り訪ねてくるのは迷惑かもしれない。
It might be a bother to show up unannounced.
行き成り良いアイデアが浮かんだので、メモを取った。
A good idea suddenly popped into my head, so I took a note.
寝ていたはずの赤ちゃんが、行き成り大声で泣き出した。
The baby, who was supposed to be sleeping, abruptly started crying loudly.
行き成り意見を変えるのは無責任だよ。
It's irresponsible to suddenly change your opinion like that.
電車で隣の人が行き成り肩にもたれかかってきて、びっくりした。
The person next to me on the train suddenly leaned on my shoulder, which startled me.
行き成りギターの弦が切れて、大きな音がした。
The guitar string suddenly snapped, making a loud noise.
初対面なのに行き成りお金を貸してほしいと言われた。
Even though it was our first time meeting, he abruptly asked me to lend him money.