chance upon
Definition
Verb: - To find or encounter something or someone unexpectedly or by accident.
Usage
This verb describes the action of discovering or meeting something or someone without planning or searching for it. It emphasizes the element of luck or coincidence in the discovery.
Examples
- Verb:
- We chanced upon a charming little café while wandering through the side streets.
- She chanced upon her old school friend at the airport.
- Researchers chanced upon a new species of insect during a routine survey.
Advanced Usage
- "to chance upon something/someone": This is the standard and most common construction. The preposition "upon" can sometimes be replaced with "on" in informal usage (e.g., ), but "upon" is more formal and standard in the fixed phrase.
- He was browsing in the bookstore when he chanced upon a first edition of his favorite novel.
Variants and Related Words
- Stumble upon/across (phrasal verb): To find or encounter something by chance. This is a very close synonym.
- I stumbled upon some old photos while cleaning the attic.
- Come across (phrasal verb): To find or meet, especially by chance.
- Have you ever come across this word before?
- Happen upon (verb phrase): A less common but equivalent phrase meaning to find by chance.
- They happened upon a secluded beach.
Synonyms
- Find unexpectedly
- Discover by chance
- Encounter accidentally
Related Phrasal Verbs
- Chance on: An informal variant of "chance upon."
- I chanced on this article while looking for something else.
Related Idioms
- Strike upon: To discover something suddenly or by chance, often an idea or solution.
- After hours of thought, she finally struck upon the answer.
- Fall upon: To discover or find something by chance (often used in literary contexts).
- His eyes fell upon a mysterious letter on the desk.
Verb
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find unexpectedly
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the archeologists chanced upon an old tomb
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she struck a goldmine
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The hikers finally struck the main path to the lake
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