happenstance

noun

hap·​pen·​stance ˈha-pən-ˌstan(t)s How to pronounce happenstance (audio)
ˈha-pᵊm-
: a circumstance especially that is due to chance
They came together by mere happenstance.
happenstance adjective

Examples of happenstance in a Sentence

Our meeting was pure happenstance. We met each other by happenstance. It was an agreeable happenstance that we met.
Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
By happenstance, his manager at the time was Sharon’s dad. Erik Hedegaard, Rolling Stone, 22 July 2025 Third, the advice or recommendations emitted by AI are bound to be tainted by the abundance of compassion and mislead people by design or by happenstance. Lance Eliot, Forbes.com, 16 July 2025 By happenstance, the Bumb family owns the flea market property near the Berryessa BART station in northeast San Jose. George Avalos, Mercury News, 3 July 2025 Their happenstance meeting during an afternoon prison visit gives way to an unlikely dynamic that gets ever thornier the more their two disparate worlds collide. Manuel Betancourt, Variety, 28 Mar. 2025 See All Example Sentences for happenstance

Word History

Etymology

happen + circumstance

First Known Use

1857, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of happenstance was in 1857

Browse Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Happenstance.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/happenstance. Accessed 30 Jul. 2025.

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