lucky
1 Americanadjective
-
luckier,
comparative
-
luckiest
superlative
-
having or marked by good luck; fortunate.
That was my lucky day.
- Synonyms:
- blessed
- Antonyms:
- unfortunate
-
happening fortunately.
a lucky accident.
-
bringing or foretelling good luck, or supposed to do so.
a lucky penny.
- Synonyms:
- favorable, propitious, auspicious
noun
-
luckies
plural
-
a familiar name applied to an elderly woman, especially a grandmother; granny.
-
a familiar name applied to a woman, as one's wife or a barmaid.
adjective
-
having or bringing good fortune
-
happening by chance, esp as desired
Usage
What are other ways to say lucky? Someone or something that is lucky has or is marked by good luck. How is lucky different from happy or fortunate? Find out on Thesaurus.com.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Adjectives
Etymology
Origin of lucky1
First recorded in 1495–1505; luck + -y 1
Origin of lucky2
Explanation
When you're lucky, things work out well for you — you experience good fortune. If you're feeling lucky, it might be a good day to buy a lottery ticket or guess the number of jelly beans in a jar. Lucky people seem to have everything going for them, and your lucky charm (like a rabbit's foot or a four-leaf clover) seems to bring that kind of success in your direction. Some lucky things are happy coincidences: "How lucky that I ran into you this morning!" When you're envious of someone else's big break, you can say, "You lucky devil." Lucky and luck come from the Middle Dutch gheluc, "good fortune."
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.
See Examples For:
Whoever is lucky enough to find one can benefit from the stability that comes with minimal annual rent increases at a time when market-rate rents are around record highs.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 31, 2026
I feel lucky to be part of this moment, where a Black queer man can lead a show.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 31, 2026
If you’re feeling lucky: Adults everywhere are suddenly clamoring to get their hands on Pokémon cards.
From Slate ● Aug. 31, 2026
Five years ago, they’d have been lucky to get $310 and $330 a month.
From MarketWatch ● Aug. 31, 2026
It was filled with pictures, diagrams, crude drawings, and the like—for, as Brickbane had reminded Clare, not every animal was lucky enough to read.
From "The Undead Fox of Deadwood Forest" by Aubrey Hartman
Even the beloveds, wonderfuls, luckies and so on were all Dones, and the awfuls were Not-Dooes.
From "The Once and Future King" by T. H. White
Kang survived, which made him luckier than others.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 9, 2026
Shahdeh Zaarb, 45, is luckier than his fellow Gazans, for he holds West Bank residency, having worked there regularly for the past 20 years.
From Barron's ● May 9, 2026
As McDermott said, “You control how hard you work, and the harder you work, the luckier you’re going to get.”
From MarketWatch ● Mar. 18, 2026
Still, as a state employee and a patron of one of Syria’s six state-owned banks, Elias was luckier than many others.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 7, 2025
I once overheard them arguing over which was the luckier number—five or three.
From "Linked" by Gordon Korman
"I am without a doubt, officially, the world's luckiest man," he told the paper.
From BBC ● Jun. 21, 2026
And the deli guy every Saturday morning would hand me a free slice of American cheese and I was like the luckiest kid in the world.
From Slate ● Jun. 20, 2026
John Thorrington must be the luckiest general manager in MLS.
From Los Angeles Times ● Mar. 31, 2026
“Palantir and Nvidia are the two luckiest companies on the planet,” he told Lewis.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Dec. 28, 2025
“You are the luckiest girl alive,” Dympna said.
From "Code Name Verity" by Elizabeth Wein
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.
