Mishap

//ˈmɪshæp// noun, verb

noun, verb ·Uncommon ·College level

Definitions

Noun
  1. 1
    An accident, mistake, or problem.

    "Since the mishap with the banana peel, he watches his step."

  2. 2
    an instance of misfortune wordnet
  3. 3
    Ill luck; misfortune; mischance.

    "Rome’s readiest champions, repose you here in rest, Secure from worldly chances and mishaps!"

  4. 4
    an unpredictable outcome that is unfortunate wordnet
Verb
  1. 1
    To happen through misfortune; to mishappen. archaic, intransitive

Synonyms

All synonyms
bad luckmischanceadversityaccidentadversenessadversity

Example

More examples

"I broke my leg in two places during a skiing mishap."

Etymology

Etymology 1

From Middle English mishap, myshappe, myssehappe, equivalent to mis- + hap.

Etymology 2

From Middle English mishappen, equivalent to mis- + hap.

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Data sourced from Wiktionary, WordNet, CMU, and other open linguistic databases. Updated March 2026.