hapless

/ˈhæplɪs//ˈhæpləs/

hapless adjective: especially of a person, unfortunate.

Adjective

hapless (comparative more hapless, superlative most hapless)

Especially of a person, unfortunate.
Very unlucky; ill-fated.
- Thus spoke my prophetic soul, as, torn by remorse, horror, and despair, I beheld those I loved spend vain sorrow upon the graves of William and Justine, the first hapless victims to my unhallowed arts.1816 June – 1817 April/May (date written), [Mary Shelley], “chapter 8”, in Frankenstein; or, The Modern Prometheus. […], volume (please specify |volume=I to III), London: […] [Macdonald and Son] for...
- Miss Phyllis Morgan, as the hapless heroine dressed in the shabbiest of clothes, appears in the midst of a gay and giddy throng; she apostrophises all and sundry there, including the villain, and has a magnificent scene which always brings down the house, and nightly adds to her histrionic laurels.1904–1905, Baroness Orczy [i.e., Emma Orczy], “The Affair at the Novelty Theatre”, in The Case of Miss Elliott, London: T[homas] Fisher Unwin, published 1905, →OCLC; republished as popular edition...
Very miserable, wretched, unhappy, measly, forlorn.
Devoid of talent or skill.
- Gideon Defoe scripted from his own series-launching comedic book The Pirates! In An Adventure With Scientists, about the adventures of a hapless group of pirates known only by names like The Pirate With The Scarf, The Pirate With Gout, and in the case of their leader, The Pirate Captain.2012 April 26, Tasha Robinson, “Film: Reviews: The Pirates! Band Of Misfits :”, in The Onion AV Club

நல்வாய்ப்பற்ற, மகிழ்ச்சியற்ற

آزردہ, بدنصیب, مغموم, ناخوش, اداس

অভাগা, দুর্ভাগা

luckless, unfortunate, unlucky: ഭാഗ്യഹീനമായ, ദൗർഭാഗ്യ, ഹതഭാഗ്യമായ, ഉപഹതക, ഭാഗ്യംകെട്ട, ദഗ്ദ്ധ

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My dear friend, are you to become that hapless kind of outcast, a champion of lost causes?1914, John Galsworthy, The Mob, act 1:
The hapless squad, which was outscored 517-268 in 2008, became the first in league history to go 0-16.2008 December 31, Harriet Barovick, “Detroit The Lost Season”, in Time:
Others view the Waymos as hapless victims, because they have no one behind the wheel and easily become paralyzed if an object is placed in their path.2025 June 13, Rachel Swan, “If Waymos are ignited during Saturday’s No Kings protest, S.F. officials could let them burn”, in San Francisco...

comparative	more hapless
superlative	most hapless

From about 1400, from hap (“luck”) + -less.

What does hapless mean?: Hapless means especially of a person, unfortunate.
What is hapless in Tamil?: Hapless in Tamil is நல்வாய்ப்பற்ற, மகிழ்ச்சியற்ற. See Hapless meaning in Tamil.
How do you use hapless in a sentence?: My dear friend, are you to become that hapless kind of outcast, a champion of lost causes?
What part of speech is hapless?: Hapless is an adjective.
How do you pronounce hapless?: Hapless is pronounced /ˈhæplɪs/.

Last updated: 2026-09-02

Pronunciation audio from Wikimedia Commons, each file under its own free license: en-us-hapless.ogg, en-au-hapless.ogg.

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