mishap
🇬🇧 /ˈmɪshæp/
🇺🇸 /ˈmɪˌshæp/
📖 Definitions
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noun
An unfortunate accident or mishap; an unlucky event that causes minor harm, damage, or inconvenience.; A minor accident or error that results in an unfortunate but not catastrophic outcome.; An unforeseen and unplanned event that disrupts the normal course of activities.; Bad luck or misfortune; an instance of ill fate.
🔗 Details
Word forms
countable
Plural: mishaps
Collocations
without mishapa minor mishapa slight mishapa series of mishaps
Derivatives
haphaplesshaphazardhaply
Synonyms
accidentmisfortunemischanceblundersetbackslip
Antonyms
successtriumph
Commonly confused
mischief
EN: 'Mischief' implies intentional playful or malicious wrongdoing, while 'mishap' is an unintentional unfortunate accident.
mischance
EN: 'Mischance' is a more literary/archaic synonym for an unlucky event, rarely used in modern English.
Spelling tips
EN: Remember that 'mishap' comes from the prefix 'mis-' + the archaic word 'hap' (meaning luck or fortune), so it is one word with no hyphen.
💬 Examples
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The picnic was ruined by a series of mishaps, including a sudden downpour and a broken cooler.
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Despite a few mishaps during the rehearsal, the performance went off without a hitch.
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The space mission was aborted due to a technical mishap during the pre-launch sequence.
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She attributed the string of mishaps to her unlucky streak that month.