W. H. Whyte
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Hapless literally means what you'd expect it to mean: "without hap"—hap being another word for fortune or luck. Hap derives from the Old Norse word for "good luck," a word that is also the source of our happen and happy. English has several words to describe those lacking good fortune, including ill-starred, ill-fated, unlucky, and luckless, a word formed in parallel to hapless by adding the suffix -less. Ill-starred suggests bringing calamity or the threat of a terrible fate ("the ill-starred year the Great Depression began"). Ill-fated refers only to being doomed ("the ill-fated voyage of the Titanic"). Unlucky and luckless usually apply to a person or thing notably or chronically unfortunate ("an unlucky slots player," "some luckless investors swindled in the deal").
Examples of hapless in a Sentence
New Atlas, 12 Apr. 2025
Bonus points, too, for excellent use of Donal Logue as the hapless chief of police.
—Jordan Crucchiola, Vulture, 4 Apr. 2025
Sarah Chalke is back as Rick's daughter Beth, Chris Parnell is his hapless son-in-law Jerry, and Spencer Grammer is his granddaughter Summer.
—Josh Hammer, MSNBC Newsweek, 1 Apr. 2025
The hapless loves do awaken some 2 1/2 hours into a 3 1/2-hour performance, becoming more serious, if not that much less superficial.
—Mark Swed, Los Angeles Times, 12 Mar. 2025
See All Example Sentences for hapless
Cite this Entry
“Hapless.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/hapless. Accessed 23 Apr. 2025.
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hapless
adjective
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