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Synonyms

unlucky

American  
[uhn-luhk-ee] / ʌnˈlʌk i /

adjective

unluckier, unluckiest

  1. (of a person) not lucky; lacking good fortune; ill-fated.

  2. (of an event or circumstance) inauspicious or characterized by misfortune; ominous.

unlucky British  
/ ʌnˈlʌkɪ /

adjective

  1. characterized by misfortune or failure

    an unlucky person

    an unlucky chance

  2. ill-omened; inauspicious

    an unlucky date

  3. regrettable; disappointing

  4. dialect causing trouble; mischievous

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Other Word Forms

  • unluckily adverb
  • unluckiness noun

Etymology

Origin of unlucky

First recorded in 1520–30; un- 1 + lucky 1

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.