案あん外がい

あ

ん

が

い

Common wordJLPTN3Freq.FrequencyTop 10,000

Meanings

unexpectedly; surprisingly; contrary to expectations

Adverbial use expressing that something is different from what one thought. Often softens a statement, similar to 'actually' or 'more than I expected'.

試し験けんは案あん外がい簡かん単たんだった。
The exam was surprisingly easy.
案あん外がい、彼かれは来こなかった。
Unexpectedly, he didn't come.

na-adjective

unexpected; surprising; unforeseen

Adjectival use with な/に, describing something as contrary to expectations. Less common than the adverbial use but natural in phrases like 案外な結果.

それは案あん外がいな結けっ果かだった。
That was an unexpected result.

See all 11 example sentences ›

Usage patterns

案あん外がい〈形けい容よう詞し〉surprisingly [adjective] (contrary to what one expected)
このレストランは案あん外がい安やすかった。
This restaurant was surprisingly cheap.
案あん外がい〈動どう詞し〉to [verb] more smoothly/differently than expected
テストは案あん外がいうまくいった。
The test went better than I expected.
案あん外がいな〈事こと〉an unexpected [thing/outcome]
案あん外がいな結けっ果かに驚おどろいた。
I was surprised by the unexpected result.

Kanji

案plan, suggestion, draft
外outside

Related words

意い外がいN3sense 1
意外 is typically used as a na-adjective for something clearly unexpected or surprising, while 案外 is more often an adverb that softly notes something differed from one's expectations.
思おもいのほかN2sense 1
思いのほか is a somewhat formal or literary way of saying 'more than expected', whereas 案外 is the everyday, more casual equivalent.
存ぞん外がい sense 1
存外 means almost the same as 案外 but sounds noticeably more old-fashioned or literary in modern speech.
予よ想そう以い上じょう
案外 expresses personal surprise that something turned out differently than thought, whereas 予想以上 specifically measures a result as exceeding a prior estimate.
割わりにN1
案外 stresses that something turned out contrary to expectation, whereas 割に more mildly says something is more/less than expected for the situation.

Don't confuse with

案あんの定じょうN2
案外 shares the kanji 案 with 案の定 but means the opposite: 'unexpectedly' or 'contrary to expectations', not 'as expected'.

Written forms

案あん外がいUsage96%
Standard kanji spelling; high-frequency in news and general use.
あんがいUsage4%
Kana spelling is common in casual writing and when the kanji is not needed.

Etymology

Compound of 案 (idea, expectation) and 外 (outside), literally 'outside one's expectations'. The exact historical derivation is uncertain, but the meaning has been stable in modern Japanese.