措手不及

cuò shǒu bù jí

HSK 3.0 Level 7 Uncommon

Definitions

1. no time to deal with it (idiom); caught unprepared

Word relationships

Antonyms

1 item

措置裕如

cuò zhì yù rú

to handle easily (idiom); effortless

措置裕如表示处理事情从容不迫，与措手不及形成鲜明对比。

Related words

1 item

手忙脚乱

shǒu máng jiǎo luàn

to act with confusion

手忙脚乱是措手不及时常有的表现，形容慌张忙乱的样子。

Synonyms

1 item

猝不及防

cù bù jí fáng

to be caught off guard

两者都表示事发突然，来不及应对。措手不及更强调手忙脚乱，猝不及防更强调心理上的毫无防备。

Usage notes

Collocations

常与‘让’或‘令’搭配，如‘让人措手不及’。

Common mistakes

勿将‘措手不及’与‘措手可得’混淆，后者表示很容易得到。

Example Sentences

1 shown

突发的情况让大家措手不及。

The sudden situation caught everyone off guard.

AI-generated examples are marked with this icon.

Child Words of 措手不及

no; not so

and

hand

to fall short of

to handle

to deal with