Gloss · Words · Serendipity

serendipity

ˌsɛrənˈdɪpɪtinoun

What does serendipity mean?

Finding something good by chance, when you were not looking for it.

Serendipity, six ways

PlainFinding something good by chance, when you were not looking for it.
ADHDA lucky find. You weren’t looking. It found you.
Gen ZWhen you stumble into something great by accident, like the best café in town while you were lost.
MetaphorTurning the wrong corner and walking into the right room.
FormalThe faculty or occurrence of making fortunate discoveries by accident.
Like I’m 5When you find something great without even trying, like a coin on the sidewalk. That’s serendipity.

How to pronounce serendipity

ser-un-DIP-ih-tee/ˌsɛrənˈdɪpɪti/

Serendipity in a sentence

They met by pure serendipity, in line for the wrong train.
Pure serendipity: the café was playing our song.
Many discoveries in science owe something to serendipity.

Synonyms for serendipity

luckPlainer, good or bad.
chanceNeutral.
flukeCasual; unlikely and a bit lucky.

Where serendipity comes from

Coined by Horace Walpole in 1754, after The Three Princes of Serendip, a tale whose heroes kept finding things by accident. Serendip was an old name for Sri Lanka.

Good to know

It needs a lucky find, not just luck: winning the lottery is luck; meeting your cofounder at the wrong party is serendipity.

Serendipity meaning, on a Gloss card: Finding something good by chance, when you were not looking for it.

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Words like serendipity

ephemeral · apricity · tsundoku · serene · sempiternal · benevolent · All 110 words

In: Beautiful words · Words for time · Words with a story · Words that make you sound smart