/ lʌk; NAmE / noun , verb
■ noun [ U ]
1.
good things that happen to you by chance, not because of your own efforts or abilities :
With (any) luck , we'll be home before dark.
( BrE )
With a bit of luck , we'll finish on time.
So far I have had no luck with finding a job.
I could hardly believe my luck when he said yes.
It was a stroke of luck that we found you.
By sheer luck nobody was hurt in the explosion.
We wish her luck in her new career.
You're in luck (= lucky) —there's one ticket left.
You're out of luck . She's not here.
What a piece of luck!
—see also beginner's luck
2.
chance; the force that causes good or bad things to happen to people
SYN fortune :
to have good / bad luck
—see also hard-luck story
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IDIOMS
- any luck?
- as luck would have it
- bad, hard, etc. luck (on sb)
- be down on your luck
- the best of luck (with sth) | good luck (with sth)
- better luck next time
- for luck
- good luck to sb
- just my / sb's luck
- your / sb's luck is in
- the luck of the draw
- no such luck
—more at pot noun , push verb , tough adjective , try verb , worse adjective
■ verb
•
PHRASAL VERBS
- luck out
••
SYNONYMS
luck
chance ♦ coincidence ♦ accident ♦ fortune ♦ fate ♦ destiny ♦ providence
These are all words for things that happen or the force that causes them to happen.
luck
the force that causes good or bad things to happen to people:
This ring has always brought me good luck.
chance
the way that some things happen without any cause that you can see or understand :
The results could simply be due to chance.
coincidence
the fact of two things happening at the same time by chance, in a surprising way:
They met through a series of strange coincidences.
accident
something that happens unexpectedly and is not planned in advance:
Their early arrival was just an accident.
fortune
( rather formal ) luck or chance, especially in the way it affects people's lives:
For once, fortune was on our side: the sun shone that day.
fate
the power that is believed to control everything that happens and that cannot be stopped or changed:
Fate decreed that she would never reach America.
destiny
the power that is believed to control events:
I believe there's some force guiding us—call it God, destiny or fate.
providence
( formal ) God, or a force that some people believe controls our lives and the things that happen to us, usually in a way that protects us:
He trusted in divine providence.
fate, destiny or providence?
Providence is usually seen as being kind: even when it sends suffering, this is accepted as being part of God's plan. Fate can be kind, but this is an unexpected gift; just as often, fate is cruel and makes people feel helpless. Destiny is more likely to give people a sense of power: people who have a strong sense of destiny usually believe that they are meant to be great or do great things.
PATTERNS AND COLLOCATIONS :
by / through ...luck / chance / coincidence / accident
It was... luck / chance / coincidence / accident / fortune / fate / providence that...
It's no coincidence / accident that...
pure / sheer / mere luck / chance / coincidence / accident
good / bad / ill luck / fortune
to have the ... luck / fortune to do sth
to tempt fate / providence (= to do sth too confidently in a way that might mean that your good luck will come to an end)
sb's luck / fortune changes / turns
a stroke of luck / fortune / fate
a twist of fortune / fate
••
WORD ORIGIN
late Middle English (as a verb): perhaps from Middle Low German or Middle Dutch lucken . The noun use (late 15th cent.) is from Middle Low German lucke , related to Dutch geluk , German Glück , of West Germanic origin and possibly related to lock (verb).