Synonyms of unlucky

unlucky

adjective

ˌən-ˈlə-kē 

1

as in unfortunate

having, prone to, or marked by bad luck

the unlucky campers had rain all week

I'm so unlucky I don't bother to play the lottery

an unlucky throw of the dice

Synonyms & Similar Words

• unfortunate
• unhappy
• luckless
• disastrous
• hapless
• catastrophic
• doomed
• hard-luck
• unfavorable
• jinxed
• adverse
• ill-starred
• ill-fated
• tragic
• star-crossed
• snakebit
• inauspicious
• damned
• unpromising
• ill
• calamitous
• accursed
• untoward

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• lucky
• happy
• fortunate
• privileged
• gifted
• favored
• favorable
• fair
• promising
• golden
• blessed
• auspicious
• propitious

2

as in tragic

of a kind to cause great distress

the settlers made the unlucky decision to cross the dangerous mountain pass in the middle of winter

Synonyms & Similar Words

• unfortunate
• tragic
• terrible
• regrettable
• horrible
• lamentable
• deplorable
• woeful
• shocking
• sad
• grievous
• distressing
• painful
• disturbing
• awful
• dire
• disastrous
• miserable
• distressful
• troublesome
• unsettling
• dreadful
• fearful
• severe
• pitiful
• heartbreaking
• sickening
• unbearable
• wretched
• vexatious
• traumatic
• crushing
• heartrending
• overwhelming
• piteous
• poignant
• moving
• alarming
• doleful
• horrifying
• affecting
• touching
• intolerable
• calamitous
• excruciating
• harrowing
• ruthful
• perturbing
• sharp
• raging

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• rewarding
• satisfying
• pleasing
• gratifying
• encouraging
• lucky
• comforting
• fortunate
• heartening
• happy
• inspiring
• cheering
• heartwarming

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of unlucky

In rebuttal, Lamin dismissed the defense’s theory that Parker had simply been unlucky. — Tyler Quattrin, Twin Cities, 6 July 2026

Canada, a little unlucky to lose so heavily, has made history this summer after making the knockout rounds for the first time and will have undoubtedly spread joy and inspired a new generation in the country. — Ben Church, CNN Money, 5 July 2026

In footage featured on the FOX broadcast, an unlucky fan excitedly threw her hands in the air to take part in the wave, only for her cell phone to fly out of her hands and into the air. — Jaclyn Hendricks, PEOPLE, 2 July 2026

Of course, another team might have been luckier, or less unlucky, in any number of ways. — Louisa Thomas, New Yorker, 2 July 2026