beat the odds
idiom
: to succeed despite not having a good chance of succeeding
Most new restaurants fail, but this one somehow managed to beat the odds.
Examples of beat the odds in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
Richard Gadd’s Netflix hit, Baby Reindeer, produced for a song and released with little fanfare, beat the odds to become a surprise sensation.
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Joe Utichi, Deadline, 7 Aug. 2024
Former Las Vegas Raiders head coach Jon Gruden beat the odds Thursday when the Supreme Court of Nevada granted his petition for en banc reconsideration of his case accusing NFL commissioner Roger Goodell or someone on the commissioner’s behalf of tortiously interfering with his Raiders contract.
—Michael McCann, Sportico.com, 3 Sep. 2019
Hilliard, getting the start in center field in place of Brenton Doyle who’s nursing a sore left hand, beat the odds with his game-clinching three-run homer in the fifth.
—Patrick Saunders, The Denver Post, 8 Sep. 2024
Even in the midst of widespread ecological catastrophe, certain animals found a way to beat the odds and survive.
—Scott Travers, Forbes, 7 Sep. 2024
See all Example Sentences for beat the odds 
Joe Utichi, Deadline, 7 Aug. 2024
Former Las Vegas Raiders head coach Jon Gruden beat the odds Thursday when the Supreme Court of Nevada granted his petition for en banc reconsideration of his case accusing NFL commissioner Roger Goodell or someone on the commissioner’s behalf of tortiously interfering with his Raiders contract.
—Michael McCann, Sportico.com, 3 Sep. 2019
Hilliard, getting the start in center field in place of Brenton Doyle who’s nursing a sore left hand, beat the odds with his game-clinching three-run homer in the fifth.
—Patrick Saunders, The Denver Post, 8 Sep. 2024
Even in the midst of widespread ecological catastrophe, certain animals found a way to beat the odds and survive.
—Scott Travers, Forbes, 7 Sep. 2024
See all Example Sentences for beat the odds
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'beat the odds.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
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“Beat the odds.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/beat%20the%20odds. Accessed 31 Oct. 2024.
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