as in unhappy
having, prone to, or marked by bad luck
Romeo and Juliet are among literature's most famous star-crossed lovers
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Recent Examples of star-crossed
Hudson Williams and Connor Storrie lead the series as the star-crossed, puck-smashing Shane and Ilya.
—
Randall Colburn, Entertainment Weekly, 5 Feb. 2026
Yes, Netflix's Regency-era romance drama (Season 4 Part 1 now streaming) has returned for a new year of lustful glances, hopelessly star-crossed lovers and absolutely absurd balls for a fourth go-round, this time with a story all about the second Bridgerton son, Benedict (Luke Thompson).
—Kelly Lawler, USA Today, 29 Jan. 2026
The Vikings have begun a new year with yet another quarterback quandary, a familiar scenario for this star-crossed franchise.
—CBS News, 6 Jan. 2026
The sweeping romance set across three decades of passion, loss, and hope in Beirut stars Hassan Akil and Mounia Akl as Nino and Yasmina, star-crossed lovers bound by a magnetic relationship, one an eternal optimist and the other an impulsive pragmatist.
—Melanie Goodfellow, Deadline, 4 Nov. 2025
Meanwhile, star-crossed lovers Ellen (Harriet Slater) and Brian (Jamie Roy) managed to plot an escape of their own — but not before getting some major blood on their hands.
—Max Gao, HollywoodReporter, 13 Oct. 2025
The star-crossed tend to double down on superstition.
—Andrew Baggarly, New York Times, 28 Sep. 2025
Lesbian star-crossed lovers à la Bonnie and Clyde?
—Quispe López, Them., 29 Aug. 2025
The duo play star-crossed BFFs in the epic romance, which Goldstein co-wrote with William Bridges.
—Alamin Yohannes, EW.com, 27 Aug. 2025
Randall Colburn, Entertainment Weekly, 5 Feb. 2026
Yes, Netflix's Regency-era romance drama (Season 4 Part 1 now streaming) has returned for a new year of lustful glances, hopelessly star-crossed lovers and absolutely absurd balls for a fourth go-round, this time with a story all about the second Bridgerton son, Benedict (Luke Thompson).
—Kelly Lawler, USA Today, 29 Jan. 2026
The Vikings have begun a new year with yet another quarterback quandary, a familiar scenario for this star-crossed franchise.
—CBS News, 6 Jan. 2026
The sweeping romance set across three decades of passion, loss, and hope in Beirut stars Hassan Akil and Mounia Akl as Nino and Yasmina, star-crossed lovers bound by a magnetic relationship, one an eternal optimist and the other an impulsive pragmatist.
—Melanie Goodfellow, Deadline, 4 Nov. 2025
Meanwhile, star-crossed lovers Ellen (Harriet Slater) and Brian (Jamie Roy) managed to plot an escape of their own — but not before getting some major blood on their hands.
—Max Gao, HollywoodReporter, 13 Oct. 2025
The star-crossed tend to double down on superstition.
—Andrew Baggarly, New York Times, 28 Sep. 2025
Lesbian star-crossed lovers à la Bonnie and Clyde?
—Quispe López, Them., 29 Aug. 2025
The duo play star-crossed BFFs in the epic romance, which Goldstein co-wrote with William Bridges.
—Alamin Yohannes, EW.com, 27 Aug. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for star-crossed
Adjective
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Incensed, Oseguera plotted revenge in 2009 and 2010 with others who were unhappy with Milenio’s new leadership and spearheaded a deadly coup.—
N'dea Yancey-Bragg,
USA Today,
22 Feb. 2026
-
Last summer, the city also confirmed that since Crow Tow took over vehicle releases from the Police Department, no appeals hearings had been held for anyone unhappy with impounding or the prices the company charges.—
Lee Rood,
Des Moines Register,
20 Feb. 2026
Adjective
-
With so much experience playing Head, Claassen is easily able to improvise in the moment answering random questions, cracking jokes and exchanging repartee with audience members, like the unfortunate man in row B who dared to show up at the theater on Friday in a casual sweatshirt.—
Pam Kragen,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
21 Feb. 2026
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Ben Jaggers finds motivation from an unfortunate disqualification that stifled his bid for a medal last year.—
Rick Cantu,
Austin American Statesman,
21 Feb. 2026
Adjective
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Vasyanovych plays Roman, a luckless director who’s out of work and trying to shoot his latest film in a country whose dwindling population is still traumatized by the war.—
Christopher Vourlias,
Variety,
6 Sep. 2025
Adjective
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After a disastrous White House meeting a year ago, Zelenskyy has adopted a more practical negotiating stance, emphasizing Ukraine’s goodwill.—
ABC News,
ABC News,
22 Feb. 2026
-
Just five months later, Kipnuk was among several villages hit by disastrous storm surge and flooding when Typhoon Halong battered the remote Alaskan coast in October 2025.—
Dinah Voyles Pulver,
USA Today,
22 Feb. 2026
Adjective
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Five goals down at half-time, the Azerbaijani champions were hapless and guileless, incapable of delaying or deflecting Gordon’s acceleration and utterly without attacking merit until the game was yanked far beyond them.—
George Caulkin,
New York Times,
19 Feb. 2026
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In the film, O’Hara’s Cookie and her hapless husband, Gerry (played by Eugene Levy), own a Norwich terrier named Winky who is competing for best in show.—
Michaela Zee,
Variety,
4 Feb. 2026
Adjective
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The sudden ascent to stardom of freshman Alijah Arenas has injected new hope into a hard-luck season.—
Ryan Kartje,
Los Angeles Times,
16 Feb. 2026
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Pratt offers no prototypical hard-luck origin story.—
Gary Baum,
HollywoodReporter,
11 Feb. 2026
Adjective
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Dane and the Grey’s writers gradually transformed Mark from a hot, swaggering jerk into a guy loved enough to have the hospital renamed after him (and his equally doomed love, Lexie Grey, played by Chyler Leigh) when the character died.—
Rick Porter,
HollywoodReporter,
20 Feb. 2026
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Blais said each of the guides on the doomed trek was trained and certified in backcountry skiing and served as an instructor with the American Institute for Avalanche Research and Education.—
Darrell Smith,
Sacbee.com,
19 Feb. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Star-crossed.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/star-crossed. Accessed 27 Feb. 2026.
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