as in coincidence
formal + literary
something that happens by chance
Our meeting was pure happenstance. We met each other by happenstance.
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Recent Examples of happenstance
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
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
Recent Examples of Synonyms for happenstance
Noun
-
The October 7th release date for Shadow Ticket may not be a coincidence.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
5 Aug. 2025
-
By coincidence, the lineups of at least two of those bands — Fanny and The Pleasure Seekers — each also featured a pair of sisters.—
George Varga,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
3 Aug. 2025
Noun
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For example, consider a situation where a trust names two beneficiaries with very different financial circumstances.—
Royce Ramey,
Forbes.com,
7 Aug. 2025
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The decision leaves the options of joining other lawsuits, filing litigation or seeking class-action lawsuits in which a large number of plaintiffs with similar circumstances join together, Goyke said.—
Alison Dirr,
jsonline.com,
7 Aug. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Happenstance.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/happenstance. Accessed 22 Aug. 2025.
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