misfortune

noun

mis·​for·​tune ˌmis-ˈfȯr-chən 

1

a

: an event or conjunction of events that causes an unfortunate or distressing result : bad luck

by misfortune he fell into bad company

had the misfortune to break his leg

b

: an unhappy situation

always ready to help people in misfortune

2

: a distressing or unfortunate incident or event

misfortunes never come singly

Synonyms

• adversity
• ill
• knock
• misadventure
• mischance
• mishap
• tragedy

Choose the Right Synonym for misfortune

misfortune, mischance, adversity, mishap mean adverse fortune or an instance of this.

misfortune may apply to either the incident or conjunction of events that is the cause of an unhappy change of fortune or to the ensuing state of distress.

never lost hope even in the depths of misfortune

mischance applies especially to a situation involving no more than slight inconvenience or minor annoyance.

took the wrong road by mischance

adversity applies to a state of grave or persistent misfortune.

had never experienced great adversity

mishap applies to an often trivial instance of bad luck.

the usual mishaps of a family vacation

Examples of misfortune in a Sentence

a victim of economic misfortune

She endured her misfortune without complaint.

It was my misfortune to be chosen first.

Her injury was a great misfortune.

He blamed the party's misfortunes on poor leadership.

Recent Examples on the Web

Peterson had the misfortune of joining the Yankees in 1966, when the team finished last in a 10-team American League, near the start of one of the more miserable stretches in team history. —Bruce Weber, New York Times, 13 Apr. 2024

Launched by Jeffrey Katzenberg with the idea of making short pieces of content that could be consumed on smartphones by people in transit, Quibi had the misfortune of launching as COVID-19 was leading the world into an extended period of couch potato-dom. —Brent Lang, Variety, 1 Apr. 2024

This corrosive treatment—as those like me, who have had the misfortune to endure its toxic blasts will know—is not for the faint-hearted. —Chloe Fox, Vogue, 23 Mar. 2024

Bru Burger had the misfortune of playing the burger version of Purdue, quickly exiting despite great expectations. —The Indianapolis Star, 21 Mar. 2024

The ignorance of many of the people she’s had the misfortune of crossing paths with is jaw dropping. —Kristen Philipkoski, Forbes, 29 Feb. 2024

But Alex and Dietz expect life to be inconvenient, and their misfortune did not dissuade them. —Elizabeth Barber, Harper's Magazine, 2 Feb. 2024

Yeager was one of the best defensive catchers in history who had the misfortune of being a direct contemporary of the best defensive catcher in history, Johnny Bench. —Houston Mitchell, Los Angeles Times, 22 Jan. 2024

The Emmys are notorious for rewarding the same shows and actors over and over again...which also means some actors have had the misfortune of losing over and over again. —Ew Staff Updated, EW.com, 16 Jan. 2024

Word History

First Known Use

15th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Kids Definition

misfortune

noun

mis·​for·​tune (ˈ)mis-ˈfȯr-chən 

1

: bad luck especially for a long period of time

2

: an unfortunate condition or event : disaster