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Mais papa, tu ne peux pas décider tout à trac de divorcer de maman après 54 ans de mariage !

Mais papa, tu ne peux pas décider de but en blanc de divorcer de maman après 54 ans de mariage !

Mais papa, tu ne peux pas décider tout de go de divorcer de maman après 54 ans de mariage !

Mais papa, tu ne peux pas décider à brûle-pourpoint de divorcer de maman après 54 ans de mariage !

I think they all mean that you decide unexpectedly and suddenly. How do those synonyms actually differ in nuances and usages?

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  • To be honest I have almost never seen or heard these idioms except de but en blanc so I cannot answer your question but I'd like to add that the most widely used would be sur un coup de tête.
    – user20904
    Jul 4, 2019 at 14:26
  • @Fólkvangr Oui, Dasshoes l'a déjà indiqué dans sa question.
    – jlliagre
    Jul 5, 2019 at 2:43
  • Stating de maman is redundant. Whom papa is divorcing is quite implicit.
    – jlliagre
    Jul 5, 2019 at 9:10
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    Personnellement c'est la première fois que je vois "tout à trac"
    – Laurent S.
    Jul 5, 2019 at 17:11

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Tout à trac and à brûle-pourpoint I would use with verbs implying some kind of verbal interaction such as dire or demander. I'm not sure décider and tout de go go well together. Décider de but en blanc is ok. But in your example, since we have 54 years of marriage and a sudden decision to divorce in the balance, I'd say :

  • Mais papa, tu ne peux pas décider du jour au lendemain de divorcer de maman après 54 ans de mariage !

To sum up, it's more a question of finding the right verb to go with each of the four expressions than a question of nuances of meaning between them.

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