adjective

• 1Sudden and unexpected.

  ‘I was surprised by the abrupt change of subject’

  More example sentences

  • ‘our round of golf came to an abrupt end on the 13th hole’
  • ‘I just think I've had too many sudden, abrupt, unexpected, and unwelcome changes in my plans to be able to commit to more plans in advance.’
  • ‘A completely unexpected and abrupt ending saw my jaw drop.’
  • ‘The fairy tale romance has come to an abrupt and totally unexpected end.’
  • ‘The heady progress of Liszt's career was brought to an abrupt halt by the unexpected death of his father in 1827.’
  • ‘The sudden, abrupt death from a heart attack of the 14-year-old from Strensall shattered all those who knew and loved him.’
  • ‘It was not a gradual shift but rather a sudden and abrupt change.’
  • ‘The abrupt change in subject startles them both.’
  • ‘Charlie blinked, surprised at the abrupt change of subject.’
  • ‘What prompted this sudden and abrupt change of attitude by Canada?’
  • ‘Patients with such implants should not receive an abrupt and unexpected communication from their surgeon that they now form part of research into an untested implant.’
  • ‘The fear of every columnist the world over is that the ideas will dry up, that the thought process will suddenly come to an abrupt halt and you are left staring at a blank computer screen.’
  • ‘Hence I am opting for an abrupt and immediate withdrawal.’
  • ‘It was Jim Green's retirement dream - a comfortable home in a warm and sunny spot with friendly people and a slower pace of life - until it all came to an abrupt and violent end.’
  • ‘Then, with abrupt violence, the door slams open.’
  • ‘But this year he has surprised many with an abrupt about-turn because something in his head seems to have clicked into place.’
  • ‘I have a close friend who is prone to similarly abrupt and violent changes of mind.’
  • ‘She looked taken aback for a second; the change of subject had been abrupt.’
  • ‘However, the other boat suddenly came to an abrupt halt, amid much cursing and shouting from its wetsuited skipper and his drysuited mate.’
  • ‘Drusilla suddenly came to an abrupt stop and Miri bumped into her.’
  • ‘He halted suddenly, making an abrupt left down a narrow alley Nara didn't like the looks of.’

  Synonyms

  sudden, immediate, instantaneous, hurried, hasty, quick, swift, rapid, speedy, precipitate

  View synonyms

• 2Brief to the point of rudeness; curt.

  ‘you were rather abrupt with that young man’

  More example sentences

  • ‘Having said that, I do not think I deserved the very abrupt and curt way in which I was treated by Mr Hutchinson on trying to explain the situation to him.’
  • ‘Deron's expression showed nothing, though I knew he must be surprised by the abrupt rudeness of it.’
  • ‘‘They were quite abrupt and offhand,’ says Elliot, who is now 39.’
  • ‘Howard Dean was often brusque and abrupt with the press.’
  • ‘By rude I mean abrupt, tactless, straightforward, honest.’
  • ‘Every year, it churns out yet another batch of churlish, abrupt or simply stupid workers who take a giant leap and land directly behind a counter or bar at a service area near you.’
  • ‘I couldn't help laughing at his abrupt, gruff delivery of the estimate.’
  • ‘But they're rude, they're abrupt, and they act like little tin Hitlers, lording it over their domain.’
  • ‘Writer, M. Leelavathy, was abrupt though sharp in her observation.’
  • ‘Into the replying email she typed a short, abrupt message.’
  • ‘He began to tell me about whirling electrons and orthicon-tubes and other nonsense, but I cut him short with an abrupt wave.’
  • ‘I wanted to ask who the hell he was, but I didn't think that he was very likely to give me an answer to that, especially considering his abrupt and rude manner.’
  • ‘Though critics saw him as quick-tempered, harsh, abrupt, and arbitrary, practically everyone recognized his genius as a chief of staff.’
  • ‘A long, drawn out, boring evening with terribly rude and abrupt service.’
  • ‘Most patients were content with their care, the determining feature of discontent being a doctor seen as rude, abrupt, or unsympathetic.’
  • ‘This is what people have thought about Martha Stewart, that she is rude, abrupt, and abrasive.’
  • ‘He was never rude or abrupt, but he was one of those guys who tended to his business and left everyone else to theirs.’
  • ‘She was often mean and rude and abrupt, but, then again, most people were at some point.’
  • ‘It can make us rude, abrupt and impatient, but it can also inspire us to tremendous courage, bravery and leadership.’
  • ‘Many of the e-mails that I receive are written in an extremely rude and abrupt tone.’

  Synonyms

  curt, brusque, blunt, short, sharp, terse, brisk, crisp, gruff, snappish, snappy, unceremonious, offhand, cavalier, rough, harsh

  View synonyms

  1. 2.1(of a style of speech or writing) not flowing smoothly; disjointed.
     ‘abrupt, epigrammatic paragraphs’
     More example sentences

     • ‘an occasionally abrupt narrative’
     • ‘Jordan, unfortunately, compounds this weakness with an abrupt style.’
     • ‘The text breaks into the temple of Russian literature with its lively and trembling, shocking and abrupt style.’
     • ‘Despite her abrupt style winning her as many friends as it did enemies, there was no denying that she deserved to be there.’
     • ‘The movie is still impressive, even if contemporary viewers may be baffled by the abrupt shifts between styles, time periods and storylines.’
     • ‘He had returned to his abrupt manner of speech but I didn't care.’
     • ‘Iris watched as his expression darkened and his speech became more abrupt.’
     • ‘I was told that I write in short bursts and my writing is kinda abrupt.’
     • ‘In this style abrupt pauses with short silences are considered embellishments.’
     • ‘Though the writing style in this work is at points abrupt, Lillback's work is truly commendable as a thorough synthesis of Calvin.’
     • ‘The story is built up through successive emotional crescendos, immediately downplayed by abrupt narrative shifts.’
     • ‘Instead, the flow was smooth in places, then abrupt, depending on what was most effective for that part of the show.’
     • ‘Even after getting used to the controls and mastering nice smooth corners the camera feels a lot more abrupt in first person than in the third person view.’
     • ‘Focus on keeping your movements smooth and fluid rather than abrupt and jerky.’
     • ‘In this respect Trout Mask Replica takes all available musical genres and foregrounds them as genre through abrupt and aggressive juxtaposition.’
     • ‘What we saw were videos with abrupt transitions, missing footage, stilted narration, and no background music.’
     • ‘This was abetted by several instances of abrupt and awkward editing.’
     • ‘Sometimes the readers do feel shocked and startled by the abrupt and terse nature of some of these poems, but the effect is rewarding.’
     • ‘Their whimsical nature, abrupt discontinuities and formal ‘shortcuts’ came across vividly.’
     • ‘I constantly had short, abrupt little pieces of dreams, but I never could remember what happened in them.’
     • ‘It made the language he spoke sound harsh, abrupt, awkward, without poetry.’
     Synonyms

     jerky, uneven, irregular, disconnected, discontinuous, broken, rough, inelegant

     View synonyms

• 3Steep; precipitous.

  ‘the abrupt double peak of the mountain’

  More example sentences

  • ‘She glanced at it briefly, taking in the trembling peaks and abrupt cliffs and faces.’
  • ‘And then, the western flank of the Wasatch Mountains rises up, sheer and abrupt, to shock as much snow from the clouds as possible.’
  • ‘The result is an interplay between the pulsating red ground, the closer-hued biomorphic forms and the abrupt vertical black elements.’
  • ‘The ground angled suddenly upward, and he staggered as the abrupt slope surprised him.’
  • ‘Its lines are harsh and abrupt, nearly geometrical.’

  Synonyms

  steep, sheer, precipitous, bluff, sharp, sudden, acute

  View synonyms