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Synonyms

by chance

Idioms  

  1. Casually, accidentally, as in I ran into Bill purely by chance. [c. 1300] Also see by coincidence.

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.

By chance the judge who heard the case, Alison Raeside, had sat on the earlier hearings, but she was not reminded of some key facts.

From BBC • Nov. 13, 2025

By chance he ran across a YouTube video of actor Omar Epps discussing the article that moved Tupac to write the track.

From Los Angeles Times • Oct. 23, 2025

By chance, Lars Hultman found a method that has been used in Japanese forging art for over a hundred years.

From Science Daily • Apr. 16, 2024

By chance, Shimon’s new song has some words of hope for people stuck at home because of the coronavirus : “Home is where the rainbow comes.”

From NewsForKids.net • Apr. 1, 2024

By chance, Rat said, he was awake to see it.

From "The Things They Carried" by Tim O'Brien

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

Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.