Word.ws English Dictionary

chancing

chancing is the present participle and gerund of chance.

Noun

chancing (plural chancings)

  1. Something that happens by chance.
    • Although some of the subjects treated of are deciduous, all of them last for seasons; and such is the intention of the book, whatever may be its chance in a world of chancings.1832, Robert Mudie, The Botanic Annual, page viii
    • I did not know what better or worse / Chancings might bless or curse […]1922, Thomas Hardy, A Procession of Dead Days
  2. (Philippines) sexual advance with suggestive body contact

Meaning of chance

Verb

chance (third-person singular simple present chances, present participle chancing, simple past and past participle chanced)

  1. (archaic, intransitive) To happen by chance, to occur.
    • It chanced that I found a solution the very next day.
  2. (archaic, transitive) To befall; to happen to.
    • […] while the King and Godwine sate at the table, accompanied with others of the nobilitie, it chanced the cupbearer (as he brought wine to the bourd) to slip with the one foote, and yet by good strength of his other leg, to recover himselfe without falling […]1826, William Lambarde, A Perambulation of Kent
  3. To try or risk.
    • Shall we carry the umbrella, or chance a rainstorm?
    Synonyms:
    test
  4. To discover something by chance.
    • He chanced upon a kindly stranger who showed him the way.
    Synonyms:
    come across
  5. (Belize) To rob, cheat or swindle someone.
    • The car broke down a week after I bought it. I was chanced by that fast-talking salesman.
    Synonyms:
    deceive
  6. (Nigeria) To take an opportunity from someone; to cut a queue.

See all 20 meanings of chance

Forms of chancing

pluralchancings

Phrases with chancing

Questions about chancing

What does chancing mean?
Chancing means something that happens by chance.
What is chancing the present participle and gerund of?
Chancing is the present participle and gerund of chance.
What part of speech is chancing?
Chancing is a noun.
What is the plural of chancing?
The plural of chancing is chancings.

Words near chancing in the dictionary

  1. chancier
  2. chanciest
  3. chancily
  4. chanciness
  5. chancinesses
  6. chancing
  7. chancing on
  8. chancing one's arm
  9. chancing the ducks
  10. chancing upon
  11. chancings

Source and license

Adapted from Wiktionary: chancing (page history and authors); chance (page history and authors). Text available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 license. Word.ws reformatted the entry and added links. Wiktionary data of 2026-09-02.

Last updated:

Cite this entry: “chancing.” Word.ws, https://word.ws/chancing. Based on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.