INDEX:
1. when someone is unlucky in a particular situation or at a particular time
2. when someone is always unlucky
3. an unlucky situation or event
4. something that is believed to give you bad luck
5. bad luck
RELATED WORDS
opposite
↑ LUCKY
see also
↑ UNFORTUNATELY
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1. when someone is unlucky in a particular situation or at a particular time
▷ unlucky /ʌnˈlʌki/ [adjective not before noun]
▪ ‘Were you disappointed with the team’s performance?’ ‘No, not really, I think we were just unlucky.’
be unlucky (enough) to do something
▪ The victims were simply unlucky enough to have been in the restaurant when the gunmen started shooting.
unlucky with
▪ We were unlucky with the weather. It rained almost every day we were on the island.
▷ unfortunate /ʌnˈfɔːʳtʃ ə nɪt, ʌnˈfɔːʳtʃ ə nət/ [adjective]
having bad luck that you do not deserve, especially when this has a serious effect on your life, health etc :
▪ Some of the unfortunate victims were trapped inside the building for over 12 hours.
be unfortunate (enough) to do something
▪ He was unfortunate enough to lose his job just after his wife had a baby.
▷ have the misfortune to do something/have the misfortune of doing something /hæv ðə mɪsˌfɔːʳtʃ ə n tə ˈduː something, hæv ðə mɪsˌfɔːʳtʃ ə n əv ˈduːɪŋ something/ [verb phrase not in progressive] formal
to be unlucky on a particular occasion, especially when this results in something very unpleasant happening to you :
▪ Bowman had the misfortune of being sent to the area where there was heavy fighting.
▪ Women who have the misfortune to be involved with violent men often think it’s their own fault.
▷ have bad luck /hæv ˌbæd ˈlʌk/ [verb phrase]
to be unlucky, especially in a way that affects one particular part of your life :
▪ Why do we always have such bad luck when it comes to hiring suitable workers?
have bad luck with
▪ Our kids have had very bad luck with their teachers recently.
have the bad luck to do something
▪ He had the bad luck to upset the boss’s wife at the party.
▷ be out of luck /biː ˌaʊt əv ˈlʌk/ [verb phrase]
to be prevented by bad luck from doing something that you want to do, for example going somewhere, buying something, or seeing someone :
▪ I’m afraid you’re out of luck. The director has already left for the day.
▪ It looks like we’re out of luck - all the hotels are full.
▷ a run of bad luck /ə ˌrʌn əv ˌbæd ˈlʌk/ [noun phrase]
a period of time during which a lot of bad things happen to you one after the other :
▪ Mimi’s had a terrible run of bad luck this year, what with the car accident and her boyfriend leaving her.
▪ Despite the Giant’s current run of bad luck, fans are still showing up for the games.
▷ it’s one of those days/it’s not my day /ɪts ˌwʌn əv ðəʊz ˈdeɪz, ɪts ˌnɒt maɪ ˈdeɪ/ spoken
say this when a lot of bad things have happened to you that day :
▪ I just want to go home, take a bath, and go to bed - it’s been one of those days.
▪ First I missed the bus, then I spilled coffee on myself, and now my computer is frozen - it’s just not my day.
▷ be in the wrong place at the wrong time /biː ɪn ðə ˌrɒŋ ˌpleɪs ət ðə ˌrɒŋ ˈtaɪmǁ-ˌrɔːŋ-/ [verb phrase]
to have something bad happen to you by chance :
▪ The driver was drunk and hit her as she was crossing the road. She was just in the wrong place at the wrong time.
2. when someone is always unlucky
▷ unlucky /ʌnˈlʌki/ [adjective]
an unlucky person often has bad things happen to them or things often go wrong by chance for them, not because of bad planning, stupidity, or carelessness :
▪ I don’t believe anyone is born lucky or unlucky - life is what you make it.
▪ Val’s one of the unluckiest people I know - on Monday her car was stolen and the day after she fell and broke her arm.
unlucky with
▪ He seems to be very unlucky with cars - every time he buys one it always has something wrong with it.
unlucky in love
▪ I’ve never had a girlfriend more than a couple of months - I guess I’m just unlucky in love.
▷ with my luck /wɪð ˈmaɪ lʌk/ [adverb] spoken
say with my luck when you think something bad is going to happen to you, and you are not surprised because you think you are an unlucky person :
▪ With my luck all the tickets will be sold by the time we get there.
▪ I thought about buying a gun, but then I thought, with my luck, I’d probably end up shooting myself by accident.
▷ just my luck /ˌdʒʌst maɪ ˈlʌk/ [adverb] spoken
say just my luck when something bad has happened to you and you are not surprised because you think you are an unlucky person :
▪ Married, is he? Just my luck.
▪ Just my luck! The one vacation I take all year, and I have to get sick.
▷ be jinxed/be a jinx /biː ˈdʒɪŋkst, biː ə ˈdʒɪŋks/ [verb phrase]
to be very unlucky, so that everything you do or get involved in seems to go wrong, often in a way that affects other people too :
▪ This is the fifth company she’s worked for that’s gone bankrupt - she’s jinxed.
▪ The way the team kept losing, I was beginning to think I was some kind of a jinx.
3. an unlucky situation or event
▷ unlucky /ʌnˈlʌki/ [adjective]
an unlucky event happens simply because of bad luck, not because of bad planning, carelessness, stupidity etc :
▪ The car in front braked suddenly and I went straight into it - it was just unlucky.
it is unlucky (for somebody) that
▪ It was unlucky for Steve that the teacher walked in just at that moment.
unluckily [adverb]
▪ Unluckily for us, Melissa had overheard everything we said.
▷ unfortunate /ʌnˈfɔːʳtʃ ə nɪt, ʌnˈfɔːʳtʃ ə nət/ [adjective]
unlucky - use this especially about something that causes a lot of harm or problems. Unfortunate is more formal than unlucky :
▪ Quarterback Brady Anderson was injured in an unfortunate collision with one of his team-mates.
▪ The mix-up was the result of a set of unfortunate circumstances.
it is unfortunate (for somebody) that
▪ It was very unfortunate that someone ended up getting hurt.
▷ unfortunately /ʌnˈfɔːʳtʃ ə nɪtli, ʌnˈfɔːʳtʃ ə nətli/ [adverb]
because of bad luck - use this when something annoying, unpleasant, or dangerous happens as a result of bad luck :
▪ I would have been here an hour ago, but unfortunately I missed the train.
unfortunately for somebody
▪ They finally cut down those old trees on our street, but unfortunately for us one of them fell on our car.
▷ as bad luck would have it /əz ˌbæd lʌk wʊd ˈhæv ɪt/ [verb phrase]
use as bad or ill luck would have it when you are describing something unlucky that happened to you as part of a series of events, and that caused you disappointment, inconvenience etc [adverb]
▪ We saw some really amazing things, but as ill luck would have it, I’d forgotten my camera.
▪ As bad luck would have it, there was a thick fog the next day and our flight was delayed.
▷ be bad luck /biː ˌbæd ˈlʌk/ [verb phrase]
to happen as a result of bad luck, especially when something bad happens to you that is not your fault :
▪ His medical condition isn’t his fault - it’s just bad luck.
it is bad luck (for somebody) that
▪ It’s bad luck for her that they decided to shut down the company right after she started working there.
▷ there is a jinx on something/something is jinxed /ðeər ɪz ə ˈdʒɪŋks ɒn something, something ɪz ˈdʒɪŋkst/
if you say that there is a jinx on a plan, occasion etc or that it is jinxed, a lot of things go wrong with it without any reason and you think it is because of bad luck :
▪ Three people have quit, we’ve had computer problems, and now the heating has broken down. There must be a jinx on this office.
▪ It’s pouring with rain and the flowers haven’t arrived - Lynne’s convinced the whole wedding is jinxed.
4. something that is believed to give you bad luck
▷ unlucky /ʌnˈlʌki/ [adjective]
▪ I never kill spiders - it’s unlucky.
▪ Why do you want to get married on the 13th?Thirteen is such an unlucky number.
be unlucky to do something
▪ Some people think it’s unlucky to walk under ladders.
▷ be/bring bad luck /biː, ˌbrɪŋ bæd ˈlʌk/ [verb phrase]
something that is bad luck or brings bad luck is believed to make bad things happen :
▪ It’s supposed to be bad luck to open an umbrella in the house.
▪ For centuries, crows have been thought to bring bad luck.
5. bad luck
▷ bad luck /ˌbæd ˈlʌk/ [uncountable noun]
the way that bad things happen to someone by chance, not because of bad planning, carelessness, stupidity etc :
▪ She seems to have nothing but bad luck when it comes to men.
▪ Talk about bad luck! Last night Ray’s car was broken into for the second time this month.
▷ misfortune /mɪsˈfɔːʳtʃ ə n/ [countable/uncountable noun] formal
bad luck, especially when this results in someone having great difficulties in their life, for example being very poor, having a serious accident etc :
▪ It was impossible not to feel sympathy for the family’s misfortune.
▪ Her misfortunes worsened this year, when her company eliminated her position and she lost her job.