next thing one knows
suddenly, out of the blue.
Meaning adapted from Wiktionary, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.
“I blinked, and next thing I knew, the cat was gone.”
“We were just talking about the weather, and next thing I knew, he was asking me for a huge favor.”
“The argument began with a minor disagreement over dinner, yet next thing they knew, they were packing their bags and ending the relationship.”
- 01
a week from next Tuesday
Some unspecified time in the future.
- 02
as best one can
In the best possible way, given one's circumstances and abilities.
- 03
as far as one knows
To the best of one's knowledge, as far as someone knows or possible information to be gathered about the topic, subject, aspect, or situation.
- 04
as the next girl
To a reasonable degree; as much as a typical woman.
- 05
as the next guy
To a reasonable degree; as much as a typical person or man.
- 06
as the next person
To a reasonable degree; as much as a typical person.
- 07
as you know
as it is already known.
- 08
back to square one
Located back at the start, as after a dead end or failure.
Last updated August 10, 2026