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Glite Dictionary
to luck it

to luck it

9.9
To try something without planning or skill and hope that luck helps
  • phrasal verb
  • UK
translation icon : confiar en la suerte
  • Rather than studying, she chose to luck it on the exam, hoping her instincts would guide her.

Examples

  • He decided to luck it and hope for the best during the final round of the competition.

  • Some players tend to luck it in poker, relying on chance instead of strategy to win hands.

  • The combination of legendary skill and luck it takes to win every game against every NFL team is virtually impossible to replicate, as the New England Patriots found out recently.

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Synonyms

to luck
vsto luck it
30 6.6

To get something by chance rather than by planning or effort

relies entirely on chance as the method instead of planning or skill
to fluke
vsto luck it
  • Informal
1 6.5

To succeed by chance rather than by skill

describes acting by pure chance rather than planning or skill
to luck through
vsto luck it
  • UK
8.6

To succeed by chance without skill or planning

relies entirely on chance instead of planning or ability
to ride one's luck
vsto luck it
  • Informal
7.4

To rely on good luck instead of working for success

relies on chance for a single act rather than continued fortune
to ride luck
vsto luck it
  • Informal
7.3

To take a risk and hope things go well

relies entirely on chance without taking deliberate risks

Surface Forms

luck it infinitive
lucked it past
lucked it past participle
lucking it present participle
lucks it third person singular

Morphology

luck + it

The core meaning 'rely on luck' is visibly related to the constituent 'luck' (good fortune), so a learner who knows that noun could plausibly infer the general idea. However, the conversion of 'luck' to a verb and the vacuous pronoun 'it' make the construction less predictable and somewhat idiomatic, so the meaning is not fully derivable without exposure.

Etymology

Luck it may come from the simple picture of leaving something to luck and doing it without a plan, like tossing a coin and hoping for the best. So it means 'to rely on luck' rather than planning or skill.