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
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
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
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Recent Examples of unlucky
Aston Villa and Lille secured automatic qualification with wins against Celtic and Feyenoord, progressing to the last 16 at the expense of Atalanta, who drew 2-2 in Barcelona, and Milan, who lost 2-1 away at Dinamo Zagreb (who were the unlucky team eliminated with 11 points).
—
Eduardo Tansley, New York Times, 28 Jan. 2026
Surrounding them is a cast of clutch supporting players, from Vincent Gardenia and Olympia Dukakis as Loretta's hilariously stubborn parents to Danny Aiello as her unlucky fiancé.
—Kevin Jacobsen, Entertainment Weekly, 25 Jan. 2026
Saks Global was lucky — or unlucky maybe — and caught a sweet spot in the bond market in December 2024, when Wall Street was jazzed by a second term with President Donald Trump.
—Evan Clark, Footwear News, 15 Jan. 2026
Schaefer just believes that Texas had been unlucky.
—Danny Davis, Austin American Statesman, 1 Jan. 2026
See All Example Sentences for unlucky
Eduardo Tansley, New York Times, 28 Jan. 2026
Surrounding them is a cast of clutch supporting players, from Vincent Gardenia and Olympia Dukakis as Loretta's hilariously stubborn parents to Danny Aiello as her unlucky fiancé.
—Kevin Jacobsen, Entertainment Weekly, 25 Jan. 2026
Saks Global was lucky — or unlucky maybe — and caught a sweet spot in the bond market in December 2024, when Wall Street was jazzed by a second term with President Donald Trump.
—Evan Clark, Footwear News, 15 Jan. 2026
Schaefer just believes that Texas had been unlucky.
—Danny Davis, Austin American Statesman, 1 Jan. 2026
See All Example Sentences for unlucky
Recent Examples of Synonyms for unlucky
Adjective
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And that’s how the forward ended up under a too-bright light at the end of this season, burdened with the unfortunate responsibility of being one of the few players the front office felt was worth investing in long term.—
Julia Poe,
Chicago Tribune,
13 Feb. 2026
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After Ellis’ unfortunate and sudden passing in 1986, Marc Jacobs was named creative director of the brand in 1988.—
Fairchild Studio,
Footwear News,
13 Feb. 2026
Adjective
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The fire department believes the tragic crash was an accident, not an intentional criminal act.—
David Zimmermann,
The Washington Examiner,
6 Feb. 2026
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At first, that seems at odds with Aleys’s tragic fate.—
Los Angeles Times,
Los Angeles Times,
5 Feb. 2026
Adjective
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For Adams’ Laura, its restorative properties are compromised by ever-present memories of her unhappy childhood, many of them directly associated with the family’s gorgeous summer house.—
David Rooney,
HollywoodReporter,
16 Feb. 2026
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Competitive equity playoffs There’s still coaches unhappy with the Southern Section competitive equity playoff system using computer algorithms to place teams in divisions.—
Eric Sondheimer,
Los Angeles Times,
16 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
Cite this Entry
“Unlucky.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/unlucky. Accessed 18 Feb. 2026.
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