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wanchancy

British

/ wɒnˈtʃænsɪ /

adjective

unlucky
dangerous; risky
uncanny; eerie

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Etymology

Origin of wanchancy

C18: from wanchance ill luck, from wan- prefix expressing negation or privation + _chance

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

An’ that wanchancy annual sang I ne’er can send them!”

From The Works of Robert Louis Stevenson - Swanston Edition Vol. 14 (of 25) by Stevenson, Robert Louis

And then the ae boat set aff for North Berwick, an' the tither lay whaur it was and watched the wanchancy thing on the braeside.

From David Balfour, Second Part Being Memoirs Of His Adventures At Home And Abroad, The Second Part: In Which Are Set Forth His Misfortunes Anent The Appin Murder; His Troubles With Lord Advocate Grant; Captivity On The Bass Rock; Journey Into Holland And France; And Singular Relations With James More Drummond Or Macgregor, A Son Of The Notorious Rob Roy, And His Daughter Catriona by Stevenson, Robert Louis

The wanchancy bullet maun have weakened his chest, nae doot.

From Huntingtower by Buchan, John

Lord save us a’l but it’s an unco life to be a sailor—a cauld, wanchancy life.

From The Works of Robert Louis Stevenson, Volume XXI by Stevenson, Robert Louis

And then the ae boat set aff for North Berwick, an’ the tither lay whaur it was and watched the wanchancy thing on the brae-side.

From The Works of Robert Louis Stevenson - Swanston Edition Vol. 11 (of 25) by Stevenson, Robert Louis

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023