abruptly

[uh-bruhpt-lee]

adverb

1. without warning; suddenly or unexpectedly.

   Not noticing that the car in front of him had stopped abruptly, he rear-ended it.

2. in few words and without using any polite formulas; brusquely.

   My 14-year-old son was calling; as soon as I picked up, he asked abruptly, “How long till you get home?”

3. steeply; sharply.

   At one end, the meadow flowed into a large valley; at the other, it dropped off abruptly in a cliff.

Other Word Forms

• unabruptly adverb

Word History and Origins

Origin of abruptly¹

abrupt ( def. ) + -ly

Example Sentences

It is understood that viewers watching the rollover saw the programme abruptly cut off after the bonus ball failed to drop on the draw machine.

Read more on BBC

Bloom Energy’s stock surged 1,000% in the past year, but its CFO abruptly left in April, following another CFO departure in 2024.

Read more on Barron's

The forward rate curve could abruptly flatten if inflation turns out to be stubbornly high, with significant implications for risk asset prices given already elevated valuations.

Read more on MarketWatch

Some analysts have counted at least a dozen more military commanders and defense-industry officials who have been absent from major events or abruptly removed from their positions.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

But the judge overseeing Baldwin’s case abruptly dismissed the charge against him during his July 2024 trial after concluding that prosecutors withheld evidence that may have been helpful to his legal team.

Read more on Los Angeles Times

Related Words

• all of a sudden 
• precipitously www.thesaurus.com
• suddenly 
• unexpectedly