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hapless

hapless

26 7.2
Unlucky in a way that makes people feel sorry
  • adjective
  • /ˈhæpləs/
translation icon : desafortunado
  • She felt sorry for her hapless neighbor, who always seemed to face bad luck with his car breaking down.
  • hapless victim
  • hapless father
  • hapless woman

There are ROM com movies where the good guy that's kind of the hapless romantic that's chasing the girl.

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Examples

  • The hapless traveler lost his way in the heavy rain and had to spend the night at a stranger's home.

  • Last month, there were two hapless chipmunks sleeping in the engine block.

    Fiction book (2002)
  • I think that... is why I'm just this... hapless romantic.

  • The doors slide shut behind him, and the hapless cops curse under their breath as he rolls off.

    Fiction book (1992)
  • Do you picture some poor, hapless soul throwing up her hands with a sigh of resigned frustration?

    Academic text (2011)
  • We have morphed this fairly hapless but good-natured guy who is hired as death's apprentice.

  • Yet in their narratives, humans are either hapless victims or depersonalized villains.

    Academic text (2016)
  • On the table near Stephen's right hand is a hapless garter snake imprisoned in a glass jar.

    Fiction book (1990)
  • Alabama's Blount and St. Clair Counties are hapless proof that it can become more than a one-shot deal.

    Academic text (1996)
  • When last seen, our hapless heroes were about to be crunched into oblivion by the perverted Wang's chomping jaws.

Synonyms

poor
vshapless
1.0

Needing pity because they are hurt, sad, or unlucky

centres on being unlucky or unfortunate rather than broader hardship
unlucky
vshapless
91 1.0

Having bad luck that causes problems

focuses more on the pity felt because of that bad luck
regrettable
vshapless
33 4.2

Causes people to feel sorry

focuses on being unlucky or pitiable rather than simply causing regret
pitiful
vshapless
30 3.2

Making people feel sorry and want to help because of suffering or weakness

describes being unlucky or unfortunate not just emotional weakness
ill-fated
vshapless
19 6.1

Likely to have very bad luck and end badly

refers to general misfortune rather than inevitable disaster
wretched
vshapless
16 5.7

Extremely unhappy and suffering a lot

describes unlucky or pitiable condition but is more intense and emotional
down on one's luck
vshapless
7 6.7

Having bad luck, often with money

describes a more general state of being unfortunate not only a short period
pitiable
vshapless
7 6.1

Making people feel sorry for someone or something

focuses on bad luck or misfortune rather than just calling for sympathy
lamentable
vshapless
  • Formal
6 6.7

Very bad and upsetting because it should not have happened

refers to personal bad luck that often arouses pity rather than mere regret
piteous
vshapless
  • Literature
3 7.9

Making people feel sorry because someone is suffering

is about being unfortunate or unlucky not only showing suffering
luckless
vshapless
2 5.3

A person who has many bad things happen to them

highlights the pity such repeated misfortune often creates
misfortunate
vshapless
  • Archaic
1 7.1

Unlucky and in need of help

stresses the pity evoked by that misfortune more strongly

Antonyms

1.0

Having good things happen by chance

296 1.8

Being lucky in a situation

How Unlucky

ill-fated
19 6.1
unlucky
91 1.0
hapless
26 7.2
lucky
1.0

Surface Forms

hapless positive

Morphology

hapless = hap (semi-transparent) = hap + less

Formally composed of 'hap' (luck) + '-less', but 'hap' is archaic/rare and not known by many learners, so the derivation only partially helps.

Etymology

Hapless starts with hap, an old word for 'luck' or 'chance' that you can see in words like happen and happy. It ends with -less, which means 'without'. So someone hapless is literally 'without luck' — unlucky or unfortunate.