vicissitude

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noun vi·cis·si·tude \ və-ˈsi-sə-ˌtüd , vī- , -ˌtyüd \

Definition of vicissitude

1 a :the quality or state of being changeable :mutability

b :natural change or mutation visible in nature or in human affairs

2 a :a favorable or unfavorable event or situation that occurs by chance :a fluctuation of state or condition

the vicissitudes of daily life

b :a difficulty or hardship attendant on a way of life, a career, or a course of action and usually beyond one's control

c :alternating change :succession

See vicissitude defined for kids

vicissitude was our Word of the Day on 11/28/2016. Hear the podcast!

Recent Examples of vicissitude from the Web

Colorado Rockies pitchers are used to the vicissitudes of life.

— jack dickey, SI.com, "Last Fall Chad Bettis Had Cancer Surgery. In the Spring He Had Chemo. Now He's Back in the Majors," 14 Aug. 2017
Getting to bed and waking at the same time each day helps buffer me from the vicissitudes of life and my illness.

— david leite, Fox News, "Notes on a 'Banana': How I learned to cope with manic depression," 31 May 2017
But this summer and fall will bring, depending on the vicissitudes of publishing industry timing, the last of those Obama-era thrillers.

— charles finch, New York Times, "Summer Thrillers: Daring Escapes and Other Acts of Derring-Do," 31 May 2017
Part of the reason Opendoor is expanding to new markets is to avoid the vicissitudes of the business.

— farhad manjoo, New York Times, "The Rise of the Fat Start-Up," 24 May 2017
At turns streetwise and geeky, Alonzo riffs on the vicissitudes of life as a Mexican-American who grew up poor and navigates life as an outsider to what is considered mainstream culture.

— esther j. cepeda, The Denver Post, "The absurdity of Cinco de Mayo," 2 May 2017
How friendships survive and ultimately nourish us through the vicissitudes of life gives this play its soul.

— marcus crowder, sacbee.com, "‘Treatment’ goes for broke at B Street and delivers all it tries to do and more," 24 Apr. 2017
Co-created by Pamela Adlon and Louis C.K., the result of this searingly funny and beautiful show is an at-times raw examination of the vicissitudes of working motherhood, crackling with feminist verve and energy, that consistently cuts new ground.

— atlanta life, ajc, "Briefs: Weather Channel Harris Poll win, ‘Atlanta’ Peabody award, Wendy Saltzman cancer free," 21 Apr. 2017
Mr. Treffer, the tourism chief, proudly lauds a historical exhibit that shows the fortunes and population of Ingolstadt, rising and falling with the vicissitudes of history.

— alison smale, New York Times, "with the headline: German Beer Purity Law (and Marketing Tool) Turns 500.," 14 May 2016

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'vicissitude.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Changes and vicissitude

"Change is not made without inconvenience, even from worse to better," wrote British theologian Richard Hooker in the 16th century. That observation may shed some light on vicissitude, a word that can refer simply to the fact of change, or to an instance of it, but that often refers specifically to hardship or difficulty brought about by change. To survive "the vicissitudes of life" is thus to survive life's ups and downs, with special emphasis on the downs. Vicissitude is a descendant of the Latin noun vicis, meaning "change" or "alternation," and it has been a part of the English language since the 16th century. In contemporary usage, it most often occurs in the plural.