mischance
/mɪsˈtʃɑːns/
"mischance" is a 9-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.
The verdict
“mischance” is uncommon English (outside the top frequency list), classed as a noun. The kind of spelling people second-guess.
- Unranked
- below top-frequency English
- 9
- letters
According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - Bad luck, misfortune.
Corpus desk
Index EN-mischance · mischance · English
mischance · unranked · 0 variants · 0 confusables
- FREQ-UNRANKED Unranked
- LEN-LONG 9 letters
- VOW-3 3 vowels
- CONFUS-0 No pairs
- VAR-0 0 variants
- BOOK-THIN "M" thin
- PHOTO-UNK Peer pending
Read with this headword: Spelling guide for this pattern
Desk codes from Wiktionary headword shape, FrequencyWords rank tier, confusable-pair count, generated misspelling depth, letter-cohort book size, and photo-finish peer. Not a difficulty grade.
| Property | Value |
|---|---|
| Headword | mischance |
| Language | English |
| Part of speech | Noun |
| IPA | /mɪsˈtʃɑːns/ |
| Letters | 9 |
| Misspellings tracked | 0 |
| Confusable pairs | 0 |
| Source | Wiktionary (kaikki.org) |
Long-tail rank of “mischance” in English
Rare enough to double-check
mischance is uncommon English outside the top frequency list, classed as anoun, transcribed /mɪsˈtʃɑːns/. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. 2 senses are on record.
We couldn't generate a plausible misspelling set for mischance, suggesting the orthography follows predictable English patterns. Our confusable-pair dataset has no match for it, since its spelling is unusual enough that it doesn't cluster with a lookalike.
Etymologically, the entry records: From Anglo-Norman meschance, Old French meschance, meschaunce. The correct English form is mischance, spelled M-I-S-C-H-A-N-C-E.
Definition
- 1Bad luck, misfortune.
- 2A mishap, an unlucky circumstance.
Recorded use
Wiktionary examplesThese source excerpts show how mischance appears in context. They illustrate usage; the definition above remains the entry’s reference meaning.
But let this same be presently perform'd / Even when men's minds are wild, lest more mischance / On plots and errors happen.
I write gaily enough, for there is no use in bewailing such a hopeless mischance.
Etymology
From Anglo-Norman meschance, Old French meschance, meschaunce.
Definitions, pronunciation, and etymology for this entry are drawn from Wiktionary via the kaikki.org structured extract (CC BY-SA). See the methodology for how each field is sourced and updated.