as in unfortunate
having, prone to, or marked by bad luck
the hapless motorist had barely paid his bill and driven away from the body shop when a truck sideswiped his car
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Recent Examples of hapless
Snarky memes started pouring onto the messaging app Telegram, ridiculing Vladimir Putin and his hapless air defense system.
—
Trudy Rubin, Twin Cities, 8 June 2025
The hapless president’s parachute gets stuck in a tree and the savvy prime minister gets him down.
—Caryn James, HollywoodReporter, 27 June 2025
The Balloon Boy hoax would seem to have all the right elements for a revisitation: a hapless, alleged victim (6-year-old Falcon Heene), sky-high danger (the balloon reached about 7,000 feet), daringly duplicitous parents (Richard and Mayumi Heene), and a national profile that gripped audiences.
—John Wenzel, Denver Post, 23 June 2025
Bud Black – Fired earlier this year after his hapless Colorado Rockies couldn’t buy a win, this former pitcher still commands respect from both teammates and rivals.
—Dan Schlossberg, Forbes.com, 20 June 2025
See All Example Sentences for hapless
Trudy Rubin, Twin Cities, 8 June 2025
The hapless president’s parachute gets stuck in a tree and the savvy prime minister gets him down.
—Caryn James, HollywoodReporter, 27 June 2025
The Balloon Boy hoax would seem to have all the right elements for a revisitation: a hapless, alleged victim (6-year-old Falcon Heene), sky-high danger (the balloon reached about 7,000 feet), daringly duplicitous parents (Richard and Mayumi Heene), and a national profile that gripped audiences.
—John Wenzel, Denver Post, 23 June 2025
Bud Black – Fired earlier this year after his hapless Colorado Rockies couldn’t buy a win, this former pitcher still commands respect from both teammates and rivals.
—Dan Schlossberg, Forbes.com, 20 June 2025
See All Example Sentences for hapless
Recent Examples of Synonyms for hapless
Adjective
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And in the process of owning your role in the unfortunate circumstances, remember, never blame your superior or the board in a public forum.—
Carol Geffner,
Forbes.com,
1 July 2025
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While Malle is clearly qualified to oversee editorial content, the timing is unfortunate for her chances.—
Laurie Brookins,
HollywoodReporter,
27 June 2025
Adjective
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This gives the creditor an additional target to pursue and make very unhappy which can indirectly put pressure on the debtor to pay the judgment.—
Jay Adkisson,
Forbes.com,
2 July 2025
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Circulation increased and the publication won two Pulitzer Prizes, but the owner, conservative Harry Guggenheim, was unhappy with the paper’s shift to the left, and he and Moyers were divided over the Vietnam War and the 1968 presidential election.—
Carmel Dagan,
Variety,
26 June 2025
Cite this Entry
“Hapless.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/hapless. Accessed 13 Jul. 2025.
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