happenstance
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.
What cemented his place there was half happenstance: his no-nonsense, on-the-scene reportage of the 1996 bombing at the Atlanta Olympics, which occurred while he was filling in at “SportsCenter.”
From The Wall Street Journal • Dec. 9, 2025
Michelle is fluent in the perky command, the passive voice, the slippery non-apology, the kind of language that frames cruelty as blameless happenstance.
From Los Angeles Times • Oct. 23, 2025
The initial Metro Bashers came to their hobby independently, meeting through happenstance and their shared love of the rail network.
From BBC • Apr. 6, 2025
This dish came about more by happenstance than planning, but I’m deeply grateful for that serendipity.
From Salon • Dec. 9, 2024
Partly by happenstance, the U.S. geneticist James Neel and the U.S. anthropologist Napoleon Chagnon flew into Yanomami country in the midst of the epidemic.
From "1491" by Charles C. Mann
Vocabulary lists containing happenstance
Portmanteaus: Vocab Mash-Ups
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The Things They Carried
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This Week In Culture: Current Events Vocab for October 24–30, 2020
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