English Reference
adjective

unlucky

adj.
US /ənˈɫəki/ UK /ʌnlˈʌki/ un·lucky

  1. 01 A2 Elementary

    having bad luck or experiencing a situation where things go wrong by chance.

    experiencing misfortune or being the subject of unfavorable chance events.

    Simple

    He was very unlucky to lose his keys on the first day of his holiday.

    In context

    The team was incredibly unlucky to concede a goal in the final minute of the match after dominating the entire game.

    unfortunateluckless
  2. 02 B1 Intermediate

    believed to bring bad luck to anyone who has or does it.

    considered inauspicious or believed to act as a harbinger of misfortune.

    Simple

    In some cultures, it is considered unlucky to walk under a ladder.

    In context

    Superstitious sailors often believed that changing the name of a ship was unlucky and would lead to disaster at sea.

    inauspiciousill fated

From un- + lucky.

Etymology adapted from Wiktionary, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.

This entry
Level A2 · Elementary
Frequency Frequent
Updated