chance

[ chans, chahns ]

noun

1. the absence of any cause of events that can be predicted, understood, or controlled: often personified or treated as a positive agency:

   Chance governs all.

   Antonyms: necessity

2. luck or fortune:

   a game of chance.

   Synonyms: fortuity, accident

3. a possibility or probability of anything happening:

   a fifty-percent chance of success.

   Synonyms: contingency

4. an opportune or favorable time; opportunity:

   Now is your chance.

   Synonyms: opening

5. Baseball. an opportunity to field the ball and make a putout or an assist.
6. a risk or hazard:

   Take a chance.

7. a share or ticket in a lottery or prize drawing:

   The charity is selling chances for a dollar each.

8. chances, probability:

   The chances are that the train hasn't left yet.

9. Midland and Southern U.S. a quantity or number (usually followed by of ):

   a fine chance of tomatoes, harvested fresh from the garden today.

10. Archaic. an unfortunate event; mishap.

verb (used without object)

, chanced, chanc·ing.

1. to happen or occur by chance:

   It chanced that our arrivals coincided.

   Synonyms: befall

verb (used with object)

, chanced, chanc·ing.

1. to take the chances or risks of; risk (often followed by impersonal it ):

   I'll have to chance it, whatever the outcome.

adjective

1. not planned or expected; accidental:

   a chance occurrence.

   Synonyms: fortuitous, casual

verb phrase

1. to come upon by chance; meet unexpectedly:

   She chanced on a rare kind of mushroom during her walk through the woods.

chance

/ tʃɑːns /

noun

1. 1. the unknown and unpredictable element that causes an event to result in a certain way rather than another, spoken of as a real force
   2. ( as modifier ) fortuitous

      a chance meeting

2. fortune; luck; fate
3. an opportunity or occasion
4. a risk; gamble

   you take a chance with his driving

5. the extent to which an event is likely to occur; probability
6. an unpredicted event, esp a fortunate one

   that was quite a chance, finding him here

7. archaic.
   an unlucky event; mishap
8. by chance
   1. accidentally

      he slipped by chance

   2. perhaps

      do you by chance have a room?

9. chances are… or the chances are…
   it is likely (that) …
10. on the chance
    acting on the possibility; in case
11. the main chance
    the opportunity for personal gain (esp in the phrase an eye to the main chance )

verb

1. tr to risk; hazard

   I'll chance the worst happening

2. to happen by chance; be the case by chance

   I chanced to catch sight of her as she passed

3. chance on or chance upon
   to come upon by accident

   he chanced on the solution to his problem

4. chance one's arm
   to attempt to do something although the chance of success may be slight

Derived Forms

• ˈchanceless, adjective
• ˈchanceful, adjective

Other Words From

• chance·less adjective
• un·chanced adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of chance¹

First recorded in 1250–1300; Middle English chaunce, chance, chea(u)nce, from Old French chance, cheance from unattested Vulgar Latin cadentia “a befalling, happening”; cadenza

Word History and Origins

Origin of chance¹

C13: from Old French cheance, from cheoir to fall, occur, from Latin cadere

Idioms and Phrases

Idioms

1. by chance, without plan or intent; accidentally:

   I met her again by chance in a department store in Paris.

2. on the chance, in the mild hope or against the possibility:

   I'll wait on the chance that she'll come.

3. on the off chance, in the very slight hope or against the very slight possibility:

   I’m free Friday, on the off chance that you end up with a spare ticket to the concert.

More idioms and phrases containing chance

• by chance
• Chinaman's chance
• eye to the main chance
• fat chance
• fighting chance
• jump at (the chance)
• not have an earthly chance
• on the (off) chance
• snowball's chance in hell
• sporting chance
• stand a chance
• take a chance
• take one's chances

Synonym Study

See happen.

Example Sentences

Doctor Who fans will have the chance to own pieces of memorabilia from the show when two items go up for auction.

From BBC

A woman whose cancer has spread to her bones, back, pelvis and neck but has been denied a life-extending drug because she lives in Wales says she "wants a chance to live".

From BBC

Rachel is currently having her final chemotherapy treatment through the NHS and said there would be a high chance of the drug working for her specific type of HER2-low metastatic breast cancer.

From BBC

De Decker had a chance to win with a checkout of 170, but missed the bullseye before Littler squared the match at 9-9.

From BBC

Kelleher is often called the best back-up keeper in the world - and nearly always performs when he gets his chance.

From BBC