the question took David by surprise
Useful english dictionary. 2012.
take someone/thing by surprise — attack or capture someone or something unexpectedly. ↘(take someone by surprise) happen unexpectedly to someone. → surprise … English new terms dictionary
take someone by surprise — take (someone) by surprise to do something not expected. His resignation took us all completely by surprise … New idioms dictionary
take someone off guard — catch/take (someone) off guard to surprise someone by doing or saying something they were not expecting. One of the larger airlines caught its rivals off guard yesterday by suddenly announcing a cut in fares. When they asked me to babysit, I was… … New idioms dictionary
catch/take someone or something by surprise — catch/take (someone or something) by surprise 1 : to happen to (someone or something) unexpectedly : to surprise (someone or something) The question caught him by surprise. The organization was taken completely by surprise by the announcement. 2 … Useful english dictionary
surprise — sur|prise1 W2S3 [səˈpraız US sər ] n ▬▬▬▬▬▬▬ 1¦(event)¦ 2¦(feeling)¦ 3 take/catch somebody by surprise 4 take somebody/something by surprise 5¦(gift/party etc)¦ 6 surprise guest/visitor etc 7 surprise! 8 9¦(method)¦ ▬▬▬▬▬▬▬ [ … Dictionary of contemporary English
surprise — noun 1》 a feeling of mild astonishment or shock caused by something unexpected. 2》 an unexpected or astonishing thing. 3》 [as modifier] Bell ringing denoting a complex method of change ringing: surprise major. verb 1》 cause to feel surprise. 2》… … English new terms dictionary
take aback — verb surprise greatly; knock someone s socks off (Freq. 1) I was floored when I heard that I was promoted • Syn: ↑shock, ↑floor, ↑ball over, ↑blow out of the water • Derivationally related forms: ↑ … Useful english dictionary
take by surprise — take (someone) by surprise to do something not expected. His resignation took us all completely by surprise … New idioms dictionary
take — I [[t]te͟ɪk[/t]] USED WITH NOUNS DESCRIBING ACTIONS ♦ takes, taking, took, taken (Take is used in combination with a wide range of nouns, where the meaning of the combination is mostly given by the noun. Many of these combinations are common… … English dictionary
surprise — 1 noun 1 EVENT (C) an unexpected or unusual event: Joan! What a lovely surprise to see you again! | surprise visit/announcement/attack etc: Let s pay grandma a surprise visit. | US forces launched a surprise attack on the Panamanian capital. |… … Longman dictionary of contemporary English
