HARD-LUCK Synonyms: 40 Similar and Opposite Words

hard-luck

adjective

ˈhärd-ˌlək

Definition of hard-luck

as in unfortunate

having, prone to, or marked by bad luck a hard-luck ball club that never could get the breaks it needed

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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.

Recent Examples of hard-luck Lauridsen, a junior right-hander, has been a hard-luck pitcher this season. — Steve Fryer, Oc Register, 5 May 2026 There’s some dark subject matter, and some hard-luck people on the fringes. — New York Times, 28 Apr. 2026 For Coronado, the hard-luck loser was freshman Quinn Smock, who pitched six innings, allowed one unearned run on three hits and struck out seven. — Don Norcross, San Diego Union-Tribune, 24 Apr. 2026 But nothing will change the chance that he was denied to celebrate with Team USA in the 2026 Olympics, or the parallels to one of the most famous hard-luck cases in sports history, Ralph Cox. — Mac Engel april 21, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 21 Apr. 2026 See All Example Sentences for hard-luck

Recent Examples of Synonyms for hard-luck

Adjective

No, this unfortunate moniker represents the lack of attention to and awareness of the disease.

— Bruce Y. Lee, Forbes.com, 21 July 2026
Typically, when rookies put up gaudy numbers in Las Vegas, their stats are accompanied by unfortunate shooting percentages or a bevy of turnovers, but that wasn’t the case for Burries.

— Eric Nehm, New York Times, 19 July 2026

Definition of unfortunate

Adjective

The luckless Jack Draper and Emma Raducanu were forced to pull out before their first-round matches because of injury, while only four of the 19 home singles players even won a match.

— Ava Wallace, New York Times, 13 July 2026
The one in which his tiny team of negotiators surrendered to the radicals ruling that luckless nation.

— Kevin Rennie, Hartford Courant, 20 June 2026

Definition of luckless

Adjective

The show, which is filmed and set in Stockport, England, follows Wood as Gemma Moscrip, a woman coming to terms with life as a mother, supported by her hapless father (Morrissey).

— Jesse Whittock, Deadline, 15 July 2026
Spurs evolved from a side who did not press well and could not progress the ball through the middle of the pitch through Frank’s miserable period and Tudor’s hapless interlude, to a side who tried to do exactly those things.

— Elias Burke, New York Times, 13 July 2026

Definition of hapless

Browse Nearby Words

hard-line

hard-luck

hardly

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“Hard-luck.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/hard-luck. Accessed 27 Jul. 2026.

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Synonyms of hard-luck

adjective

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