serendipity
14
7.9
- noun
- /ˌsɛrənˈdɪpɪti/
- Her encounter with an old friend at the airport was a delightful moment of serendipity that brightened her day.
Loading YouTube…
Watch on YouTubeGive without expectation, but understand the serendipity may work itself out.
- Give without expectation, but understand the serendipity may work itself out.
- And isn't it funny how serendipity or luck just plays a part in your life?
- It's about the happenstance, serendipity, chance.
- That wonderful shot, which was great serendipity.
- And so the, the incredible, you know, serendipity in Providence was that I came full circle.
- Yeah, I think partially with serendipity, I was in the right place at the right time on the right St.
- But there is no question, luck, serendipity, like whatever you want to call it like is very real and you need to be very ready to capitalize on it.
- I think what happens is serendipity either happens or it doesn't happen to you.
- Well, I again, let's use this word serendipity.
- Just so much of this is just serendipity.
- Some things they're bad luck, they're serendipity or bad timing or things that you could not control.
- It's looking at what you've read and making a guess based on that, but there's no real serendipity to it.
Examples
-
And isn't it funny how serendipity or luck just plays a part in your life?
-
Curators are often handed remarkable opportunities through the serendipity of their careers.
Academic text (2007) -
Glad the post came along at a good time; serendipity is a wonderful thing.
Blog text (9) -
It's about life, connection, faith, serendipity, and how all of those things can make art.
Blog text (17) -
You see, science has its own time... ...and, very often, any new advance can be a matter of serendipity.
-
What a delightful force of nature, serendipity.
-
She's right, but I think also serendipity is a beautiful thing.
-
It had to do with serendipity and good luck.
-
There is nothing inherently wrong with accidents; serendipity is a feature of science.
Academic text (2000) -
For Hirsch, bringing forth his vision of technology in the classroom was part calculation, part serendipity.
Academic text (2007)
Synonyms
∞
1.0
A force that makes good or bad things happen by chance
∞
1.0
A fortunate event that happens by chance
222
3.1
Good or bad luck that happens by chance
74
2.5
A lucky event or success that happens by chance
42
5.1
An unexpected good event that happens by chance
25
4.9
Something very helpful that you did not expect when you needed it
18
3.2
A sudden chance that helps you succeed
15
3.9
Good luck that happens by chance, not because you worked for it
14
8.5
A chance event that seems planned but is actually an accident
10
3.2
A sudden lucky event that brings good results
1
7.5
Very good luck that happens by chance and seems undeserved
1
3.9
A lucky unexpected event that brings something good
1
9.9
A lucky unexpected discovery of something valuable or interesting
An unexpected good thing that happens by chance
Antonyms
How Fortunate
Surface Forms
Morphology
serendipity = Serendip (opaque) = serendip + ity
Although formed with the productive suffix '-ity', the base 'Serendip' is a proper name and unknown to most learners, so the meaning 'fortunate chance' is not derivable from components.
Etymology
Serendipity comes from Serendip, an old name for Sri Lanka, and from a Persian tale called 'The Three Princes of Serendip' whose characters kept finding useful things by happy accident. So serendipity means 'a happy, unexpected discovery'.