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French Expression
| Meaning | all at once; ~ all of a sudden | |
| Literally | all in one blow | |
| Register | normal | |
| Pronunciation |  |
[too doo(n) koo] |
| IPA | [tu dœ̃ ku] | |
Usage notes: The French expression tout d’un coup is used with two somewhat similar meanings, but one of them is wrong.
The real meaning of tout d’un coup is “all at once, in a single move, in one fell swoop.”
Par exemple…
| Le séisme a détruit le village tout d’un coup. | The earthquake destroyed the town in one fell swoop. | |
| Tout d’un coup, il a saisi ses affaires et est parti. | All at once, he grabbed his things and left. |
Variation: d’un coup
Synonyms
- d’un seul coup
- d’un trait (with a verb like boire or avaler)
- en une seule fois
- en une seule gorgée (boire, avaler)
Tout d’un coup is an indicator that you need the passé composé rather than imparfait.
Faux synonym
Native French speakers commonly – but mistakenly – use tout d’un coup to mean tout à coup.
| Tout d’un coup, la voiture s’est retournée. | Really means: In a single move, the car flipped over. |
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| Je lisais quand tout d’un coup j’ai eu une idée. | Really means: I was reading when I had an idea all at once. |
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