circumstance

[sur-kuhm-stans, -stuhns] / ˈsɜr kəmˌstæns, -stəns /

NOUN

situation, condition

Synonyms

STRONGEST

accident action case cause coincidence crisis detail event fact factor fate incident matter occurrence status thing time

STRONG

adjunct affair article concern contingency destiny doom element episode exigency feature fortuity go happening happenstance intervention item juncture kismet lot occasion particular phase place point portion proviso respect scene stipulation supervention

WEAK

Moira where it's at

Antonyms

STRONGEST

plan

STRONG

whole

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

These unique circumstance means Lidl is unlikely to be adding pubs to its 13,000 shops across the world.

From BBC • Apr. 9, 2026

And since losses from some of those shorts could be unlimited, the covering of those positions could trigger a stampede of buying, a circumstance known on Wall Street as a short squeeze.

From MarketWatch • Apr. 6, 2026

Some are capitalists, some are communists, but we’re all Cubans, divided by chance, circumstance and the sea.

From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 3, 2026

Kenyan President William Ruto said the rail link will "define generations", speaking at a ceremony in grand pomp and circumstance with his Ugandan counterpart Yoweri Museveni in Kisumu, near the Kenya-Uganda border.

From Barron's • Mar. 21, 2026

The saying might have worn out of my memory, had not a circumstance immediately followed which served indelibly to fix it there.

From "Jane Eyre" by Charlotte Brontë

Vocabulary lists containing circumstance

List 8

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Around and Around: Circum

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Excerpt from "The Adventures of Tom Sawyer"

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