rude awakening
noun
: surprising and unpleasant discovery that one is mistaken
He thinks he can get by without doing any work, but he is in for a rude awakening.
Examples of rude awakening in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
Riri gets a rude awakening in Episode 1 when she’s expelled from MIT for some side hustles academics frown on.
—
Randy Myers, Mercury News, 27 June 2025
Fiery start to Game 2 Facing a 1-0 series deficit coming into Sunday’s game, first year head coach Kevin Schnall along with first base coach Matt Schilling got a rude awakening in the bottom of the first inning.
—Jacob Lev, CNN Money, 22 June 2025
Unfortunately, others are going to have a rude awakening.
—Kyle Thomas, People.com, 6 July 2025
Many beachgoers enjoying the waters off Newport Beach on the July Fourth holiday were in for a rude awakening.
—Los Angeles Times, 5 July 2025
See All Example Sentences for rude awakening
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Randy Myers, Mercury News, 27 June 2025
Fiery start to Game 2 Facing a 1-0 series deficit coming into Sunday’s game, first year head coach Kevin Schnall along with first base coach Matt Schilling got a rude awakening in the bottom of the first inning.
—Jacob Lev, CNN Money, 22 June 2025
Unfortunately, others are going to have a rude awakening.
—Kyle Thomas, People.com, 6 July 2025
Many beachgoers enjoying the waters off Newport Beach on the July Fourth holiday were in for a rude awakening.
—Los Angeles Times, 5 July 2025
See All Example Sentences for rude awakening
Cite this Entry
“Rude awakening.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/rude%20awakening. Accessed 22 Jul. 2025.
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