Hapless

Part of speech: adjective

Pronunciation: /ˈhæplɪs/

Definitions

1. Unfortunate and deserving of pity, especially due to a series of unlucky events or circumstances beyond one's control
2. consistently plagued by misfortune and lacking the luck or competence to avoid calamity
3. marked by persistent bad fortune and an inability to escape unfortunate circumstances

Etymology: "Hapless" is a straightforward formation: the noun "hap," meaning luck or chance, with the suffix "-less" attached, meaning "without." Put together, it describes someone or something without luck, which is exactly how it is used today. The word entered English around 1400, when "hap" was still a living noun for fortune, whether good or bad. That noun is the more interesting half. "Hap" came into English from Old Norse "happ," meaning good luck or chance, and it appears in a range of older English words that have since faded. Its lineage shows how chance and fortune were once treated as a single idea, with "hap" standing for whatever happened to a person, good or ill, and "hapless" marking the absence of any such help from fate.

Synonyms: unlucky, ill-fated, unfortunate

Antonyms: fortunate, lucky