serendipity

Noun

serendipity (countable and uncountable, plural serendipities)

1. The phenomenon of making an unplanned, fortunate discovery through a combination of unexpected circumstances and insightful recognition.
   • The most random serendipity brought the two of us together, and now, we are happily married! If I was just 15 seconds slower, I'd have never met her!
   • This discovery, indeed, is almost of that kind which I call Serendipity, a very expressive word, which, as I have nothing better to tell you, I shall endeavour to explain to you: you will understand it better by the derivation than by the definition. I once read a silly fairy tale, called "The...1754, Horace Walpole, The Letters of Horace Walpole, vol. 2, Letter 90, To Sir Horace Mann, Arlington Street, Jan. 28, 1754. The Project Gutenberg Etext of The Letters of Horace Walpole, Volume 2

   Antonyms:

   Murphy's law, perfect storm

2. An unsought, unintended or unexpected, but fortunate, discovery or learning experience that occurs by accident.
   • Serendipity is when you find things you weren't looking for because finding what you are looking for is so damn difficult.2007, Erin McKean, speech at TED

   Synonyms:

   chance, luck, adventure, accident, casualty, chance-medley, fortune, hap, hazard, joss

3. The occurrence and development of events by chance in a happy or beneficial way.