Used and loved by millions

Since I tried Ludwig back in 2017, I have been constantly using it in both editing and translation. Ever since, I suggest it to my translators at ProSciEditing.

Justyna Jupowicz-Kozak quote

Justyna Jupowicz-Kozak

CEO of Professional Science Editing for Scientists @ prosciediting.com

MitStanfordHarvardAustralian Nationa UniversityNanyangOxford

prevent unexpected

Grammar usage guide and real-world examples

USAGE SUMMARY

The phrase "prevent unexpected" is not correct as it is incomplete and lacks clarity in written English.
It can be used in contexts where you want to indicate the action of stopping unforeseen events or outcomes, but it needs to be part of a more complete phrase. Example: "We need to implement measures to prevent unexpected delays in the project timeline."

⚠ May contain grammatical issues

Science

News & Media

Formal & Business

Human-verified examples from authoritative sources

Exact Expressions

38 human-written examples

"We're continually working to improve our algorithms to prevent unexpected results like this.

News & Media

Independent

Or do those characters belong only in the young-adult equivalent of the after-school special, clearly labeled to prevent unexpected reader consumption?

News & Media

The New York Times

The Chinese authorities issued orders to cancel bilateral exchanges on the mainland, citing a desire at a time of fervent anti-Japanese feelings to prevent "unexpected contingencies".

News & Media

The Economist

What's more, they identified further upgrades to plants' physical defenses that are needed in order to prevent unexpected external hazards from causing serious damage.

News & Media

The New York Times

In addition, monitoring is important to help prevent unexpected consequences.

The restriction to linker edges is to prevent unexpected superfluous edges in the resulting graph.

Show more...

Human-verified similar examples from authoritative sources

Similar Expressions

22 human-written examples

Cell fixation aims to maintain cells or cellular components in life-like state, preventing unexpected changes by preserving essential chemical and physical characteristics of cells for further observation.

The early identification and location of high-frequency current pulses related to partial discharges (PDs) in the solid insulation of power transformers enable the optimization and planning of maintenance interventions, preventing unexpected power interruptions and reducing downtime.

Prognostics and health management (PHM) is an emerging engineering discipline that can help in increasing a system's reliability via predicting faults which allows for preventing unexpected failures and prolonged downtime.

With regard to the critical role of maintenance in improving reliability, preventing unexpected system failures and reducing maintenance costs, maintenance and replacement problems have been widely studied from different perspectives in the literature, and several models have been proposed (Wang 2002).

No matter how hard the candidates prepare, there is no way to prevent something unexpected from happening.

Show more...

Expert writing Tips

Best practice

When aiming to communicate the idea of stopping something before it occurs, it's essential to use stronger, more complete phrases. Instead of saying "prevent unexpected", consider "prevent unexpected outcomes" or "prevent unexpected issues".

Common error

Avoid using incomplete phrases like "prevent unexpected". Always specify what you are trying to prevent to enhance clarity and make your writing more effective.

Antonio Rotolo, PhD - Digital Humanist | Computational Linguist | CEO @Ludwig.guru

Antonio Rotolo, PhD

Digital Humanist | Computational Linguist | CEO @Ludwig.guru

Source & Trust

79%

Authority and reliability

3.5/5

Expert rating

Real-world application tested

Linguistic Context

The phrase "prevent unexpected" functions as an incomplete verb phrase. It aims to express the action of stopping something unforeseen from happening. As Ludwig AI indicates, it needs completion to make grammatical sense.

Expression frequency: Common

Frequent in

Science

62%

News & Media

27%

Wiki

5%

Less common in

Formal & Business

4%

Encyclopedias

0%

Reference

0%

Ludwig's WRAP-UP

In summary, while the phrase "prevent unexpected" is commonly used, Ludwig AI specifies that it's grammatically incomplete and requires a noun to clarify its meaning. Examples from Ludwig show its usage across science, news, and business domains. For clearer communication, replace it with alternatives such as "avoid unforeseen" or complete the phrase by specifying what needs to be prevented like "prevent unexpected delays".

More alternative expressions(6)

Phrases that express similar concepts, ordered by semantic similarity:

avoid unforeseen

This alternative uses 'avoid' instead of 'prevent' and 'unforeseen' instead of 'unexpected', offering a slightly different emphasis on averting rather than stopping.

avert unanticipated

This alternative substitutes 'prevent' with 'avert', meaning to turn away or ward off. 'Unanticipated' replaces 'unexpected' keeping similar meaning.

mitigate unanticipated

This alternative replaces 'prevent' with 'mitigate' suggesting a reduction in severity rather than a complete stop, and 'unexpected' with 'unanticipated'.

forestall unforeseen

This alternative employs 'forestall' which means to act in advance to prevent something, along with 'unforeseen', offering a more proactive sense.

preclude unpredicted

Using 'preclude' instead of 'prevent' indicates making something impossible. Replacing 'unexpected' with 'unpredicted' emphasizes the inability to foresee the outcome.

ward off unforeseen

This alternative replaces 'prevent' with 'ward off', meaning to avert or turn away (something dangerous or unpleasant) from oneself. 'Unforeseen' replaces 'unexpected'.

deter unforeseen

This alternative replaces 'prevent' with 'deter', suggesting discouragement, alongside 'unforeseen'.

impede unanticipated

This alternative replaces 'prevent' with 'impede', which means to delay or prevent something by obstructing it; using 'unanticipated' for 'unexpected'.

block unpredicted

This alternative replaces 'prevent' with 'block', indicating obstruction. 'Unpredicted' is used instead of 'unexpected'.

preclude surprise

Using 'preclude' instead of 'prevent' indicates making something impossible and 'surprise' replaces 'unexpected'.

FAQs

What can I say instead of "prevent unexpected"?

You can use alternatives like "avoid unforeseen", "mitigate unanticipated", or "forestall unforeseen" depending on the context.

How to use a more complete phrase with "prevent unexpected"?

To improve clarity, specify what you're preventing, like "prevent unexpected delays", "prevent unexpected costs", or "prevent unexpected complications".

What's the difference between "prevent unexpected" and "avoid unforeseen"?

"Avoid unforeseen" suggests steering clear of something that might happen, while "prevent unexpected" aims to actively stop something from occurring. However, "prevent unexpected" is incomplete and needs a noun to be grammatically correct.

Is "prevent unexpected" grammatically correct?

The phrase "prevent unexpected" is grammatically incomplete. It requires a noun to clarify what is being prevented; for example, "prevent unexpected problems".

ChatGPT power + Grammarly precisionChatGPT power + Grammarly precision
ChatGPT + Grammarly

Editing plus AI, all in one place.

Stop switching between tools. Your AI writing partner for everything—polishing proposals, crafting emails, finding the right tone.

Source & Trust

79%

Authority and reliability

3.5/5

Expert rating

Real-world application tested

Most frequent sentences: