take/catch somebody unawares
From Longman Dictionary of Contemporary Englishtake/catch somebody unawarestake/catch somebody unawaresEXPECTif something takes you unawares, it happens when you are not expecting it and are not prepared The question caught me completely unawares. → unawaresExamples from the Corpustake/catch somebody unawares• I was caught unawares by his kiss.