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.
The country’s very first poly-friendly city ordinance came about almost by happenstance.
From Los Angeles Times • Mar. 18, 2026
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
Many of Burns’ works do, purely by happenstance.
From Salon • Nov. 15, 2025
Marles had met Hegseth in August to lobby him on Aukus, but the latter's office issued - and later retracted - a statement saying there were no talks, only "a happenstance encounter".
From BBC • Oct. 20, 2025
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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