Phrase (Adverbial expression)
/dɛ reˈpɛm̪te/
"De repente" is an adverbial phrase commonly used to indicate a sudden or unexpected occurrence. It is widely used in both oral and written contexts in Spanish. The phrase conveys a sense of immediacy and can describe any abrupt change or event, often catching people off guard. Its usage frequency is moderate to high, with a slightly higher prevalence in everyday conversation.
De repente, comenzó a llover.
Suddenly, it started to rain.
Ella entró en la habitación de repente.
She entered the room all of a sudden.
De repente, escuché un fuerte ruido.
All of a sudden, I heard a loud noise.
"De repente" is a key part of many idiomatic expressions in Spanish that denote the abruptness of actions or events. Here are examples of some idiomatic phrases that include it:
De repente, todo cambió.
Suddenly, everything changed.
De repente, se dio cuenta de su error.
All of a sudden, he realized his mistake.
Vino de repente y nos sorprendió a todos.
He came unexpectedly and surprised us all.
De repente, sintió un gran vacío.
Suddenly, she felt a great emptiness.
Todo fue de repente, como un sueño.
Everything happened suddenly, like a dream.
De repente, la música se detuvo.
All of a sudden, the music stopped.
Ella comenzó a llorar de repente.
She started crying all of a sudden.
De repente, recordé dónde había dejado las llaves.
Suddenly, I remembered where I had left the keys.
The phrase "de repente" can be broken down into two components: "de," a preposition meaning "of" or "from," and "repente," which comes from the Latin "repentis," meaning "sudden." The combination of these words reflects the idea of something that comes from nowhere or occurs suddenly.
In summary, "de repente" is a versatile and frequently used expression in Spanish that conveys a sense of suddenness and surprise, prevalent in both spoken and written language contexts.