How to Use against (all) expectations in a Sentence

against (all) expectations

idiom

• And this newfound ocean, against all expectations, appears to be a proverbial newborn on the timescale of the solar system.
  — Robin George Andrews, Scientific American, 7 Feb. 2024
• At the time, though, things seemed to be getting better; the case count in India was low, against all expectations.
  — Mriga Kapadiya, Vogue, 14 May 2021
• For all the attrition, the unit did much better against expectations in the 2-4 finish than the offense did.
  — Kenny Rosarion, Sun Sentinel, 14 Jan. 2024
• Yet, against expectations and with the current war in Ukraine starting its fifth month, no outcome is apparent.
  — Elizabeth Edwards Spalding, National Review, 26 June 2022
• Just pushing forward, against expectations that only grow more difficult to achieve, conscious of the past but not weighed down by it.
  — Zach Osterman, The Indianapolis Star, 23 July 2021
• Although the season has been in a bit of slump against expectations, it’s not been without casualties.
  — Joe Mario Pedersen, Orlando Sentinel, 29 July 2022
• Here, from a twenty-three-year-old, was a new tone in the language, a different way of saying, pushing back against expectations of rhythm and syntax and referent.
  — Nick Laird, The New York Review of Books, 16 Mar. 2023
• The New Horizons images show that ice and frozen gas can be as dynamic as rock and lava, and that small bodies can remain active just as long as big ones, against all expectations.
  — Corey S Powell, Discover Magazine, 19 July 2015
• But against expectations that its dominance was fading, the U.S. won a sixth consecutive world team title.
  — Louise Radnofsky, WSJ, 2 Nov. 2022
• And coaches are ultimately judged not just by results but by how those results are measured against expectations.
  — Michael Rand, Star Tribune, 30 Oct. 2020
• Swing states suddenly shift toward the opponent, who, against all expectations, wins.
  — Mustafa Suleyman, Fortune, 5 Sep. 2023
• Creditors noted that, against expectations, the payments were received in dollars—which means Russia remains in compliance with the terms of the offerings.
  — Judy Shelton, WSJ, 24 Mar. 2022
• If the local underdog team won against expectations (as measured by looking at the odds given by betting offices), the incumbent’s vote share went up by 1.61 percentage points.
  — Ed Yong, Discover Magazine, 6 July 2010
• That theme might be a celebration of female gumption, resilience and humor — qualities that the title character of To Leslie embodies, against the odds and against expectations.
  — Sheri Linden, The Hollywood Reporter, 12 Mar. 2022
• Gioia notes that against all expectations, Barnes & Noble is now profitable, and planning on opening 30 new stores, even as mighty Amazon has shuttered their (truly terrible) brick-and-mortar outlets.
  — John Warner, Chicago Tribune, 21 Jan. 2023
• Such a turnabout against expectations would not be unprecedented, either.
  — Samuel Goldman, The Week, 1 Sep. 2021
• The primary cause for this failure or underperformance against expectations and goals is the amount of change that digital investments require an organization to make.
  — Peter Bendor-Samuel, Forbes, 4 Oct. 2022
• Negotiators’ call for an end to coal use and fossil fuel subsidies, as well as greater funding from wealthy nations to help poor nations cope with irreversible climate impacts, has against expectations survived into Friday.
  — Washington Post, 10 Aug. 2021
• Niyonsaba switched to the unregulated long distances and qualified for Tokyo against expectations.
  — Gerald Imray, Star Tribune, 31 July 2021
• As colleges and universities begin to plan for the fall, administrators cautioned against expectations of an entirely normal semester.
  — Amanda Blanco, courant.com, 15 Mar. 2021
• Measuring results against expectations is a simple and technically objective way to gauge performance.
  — Ryan Faughnderstaff Writer, Los Angeles Times, 10 Jan. 2023
• Counsell warned against expectations that games will be played noticeably different beginning Monday, however.
  — Tom Haudricourt, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, 16 June 2021
• Analysts also also pointed to media reports suggesting ECB policymakers wanted to push back against expectations for a slowdown in policy tightening.
  — Chelsey Dulaney, WSJ, 28 Oct. 2022

Last Updated: 5 Nov 2024