malchance

bad luck, misfortune

noun mal-SHAHNS Rare

Usage Note

Malchance is formed from mal (bad) + chance (luck) and refers to persistent or recurring bad luck. The adjective malchanceux/malchanceuse means unlucky. A near-synonym is mauvaise chance; the opposite is bonne chance (good luck) or veine (luck, informal). Quelle malchance! ('What bad luck!') is a common exclamation.

Examples

"Par malchance, il a raté son train."

Natural Translation

By bad luck, he missed his train.

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