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chance

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chance


  8  definitions  found 
 
  From  Webster's  Revised  Unabridged  Dictionary  (1913)  [web1913]: 
 
  Chance  \Chance\,  v.  t. 
  1.  To  take  the  chances  of  to  venture  upon  --  usually  with 
  it  as  object. 
 
  Come  what  will  I  will  chance  it  --W.  D. 
  Howells. 
 
  2.  To  befall;  to  happen  to  [Obs.]  --W.  Lambarde 
 
  From  Webster's  Revised  Unabridged  Dictionary  (1913)  [web1913]: 
 
  Chance  \Chance\,  adv 
  By  chance;  perchance.  --Gray. 
 
  From  Webster's  Revised  Unabridged  Dictionary  (1913)  [web1913]: 
 
  Chance  \Chance\,  a. 
  Happening  by  chance;  casual. 
 
  From  Webster's  Revised  Unabridged  Dictionary  (1913)  [web1913]: 
 
  Chance  \Chance\  (ch[.a]ns),  n.  [F.  chance,  OF  cheance,  fr  LL 
  cadentia  a  allusion  to  the  falling  of  the  dice),  fr  L. 
  cadere  to  fall;  akin  to  Skr.  [,c]ad  to  fall,  L.  cedere  to 
  yield,  E.  cede.  Cf  {Cadence}.] 
  1.  A  supposed  material  or  psychical  agent  or  mode  of  activity 
  other  than  a  force,  law,  or  purpose;  fortune;  fate;  --  in 
  this  sense  often  personified. 
 
  It  is  strictly  and  philosophically  true  in  nature 
  and  reason  that  there  is  no  such  thing  as  chance  or 
  accident;  it  being  evident  that  these  words  do  not 
  signify  anything  really  existing,  anything  that  is 
  truly  an  agent  or  the  cause  of  any  event;  but  they 
  signify  merely  men's  ignorance  of  the  real  and 
  immediate  cause  --Samuel 
  Clark. 
 
  Any  society  into  which  chance  might  throw  him 
  --Macaulay. 
 
  That  power  Which  erring  men  call  Chance.  --Milton. 
 
  2.  The  operation  or  activity  of  such  agent. 
 
  By  chance  a  priest  came  down  that  way  --Luke  x.  31. 
 
  3.  The  supposed  effect  of  such  an  agent;  something  that 
  befalls,  as  the  result  of  unknown  or  unconsidered  forces; 
  the  issue  of  uncertain  conditions;  an  event  not  calculated 
  upon  an  unexpected  occurrence;  a  happening;  accident; 
  fortuity;  casualty. 
 
  It  was  a  chance  that  happened  to  us  --1  Sam.  vi 
  9. 
 
  The  Knave  of  Diamonds  tries  his  wily  arts,  And  wins 
  (O  shameful  chance!)  the  Queen  of  Hearts.  --Pope. 
 
  I  spake  of  most  disastrous  chance.  --Shak. 
 
  4.  A  possibility;  a  likelihood;  an  opportunity;  --  with 
  reference  to  a  doubtful  result;  as  a  chance  to  escape;  a 
  chance  for  life;  the  chances  are  all  against  him 
 
  So  weary  with  disasters,  tugged  with  fortune.  That  I 
  would  get  my  life  on  any  chance,  To  mend  it  or  be 
  rid  on  't  --Shak. 
 
  5.  (Math.)  Probability. 
 
  Note:  The  mathematical  expression,  of  a  chance  is  the  ratio 
  of  frequency  with  which  an  event  happens  in  the  long 
  run.  If  an  event  may  happen  in  a  ways  and  may  fail  in  b 
  ways,  and  each  of  these  a  +  b  ways  is  equally  likely, 
  the  chance,  or  probability,  that  the  event  will  happen 
  is  measured  by  the  fraction  a/a  +  b,  and  the  chance,  or 
  probability,  that  it  will  fail  is  measured  by  b/a  +  b. 
 
  {Chance  comer},  one  who  comes  unexpectedly. 
 
  {The  last  chance},  the  sole  remaining  ground  of  hope. 
 
  {The  main  chance},  the  chief  opportunity;  that  upon  which 
  reliance  is  had  esp.  self-interest. 
 
  {Theory  of  chances},  {Doctrine  of  chances}  (Math.),  that 
  branch  of  mathematics  which  treats  of  the  probability  of 
  the  occurrence  of  particular  events,  as  the  fall  of  dice 
  in  given  positions. 
 
  {To  mind  one's  chances},  to  take  advantage  of  every 
  circumstance;  to  seize  every  opportunity. 
 
  From  Webster's  Revised  Unabridged  Dictionary  (1913)  [web1913]: 
 
  Chance  \Chance\,  v.  i.  [imp.  &  p.  p.  {Chanced};  p.  pr  &  vb  n. 
  {Chancing}.] 
  To  happen,  come  or  arrive,  without  design  or  expectation. 
  ``Things  that  chance  daily.''  --Robynson  (More's  Utopia). 
 
  If  a  bird's  nest  chance  to  be  before  thee.  --Deut. 
  xxii.  6. 
 
  I  chanced  on  this  letter.  --Shak. 
 
  Note:  Often  used  impersonally;  as  how  chances  it? 
 
  How  chance,  thou  art  returned  so  soon?  --Shak. 
 
  From  WordNet  r  1.6  [wn]: 
 
  chance 
  adj  :  occurring  or  appearing  or  singled  out  by  chance;  "their 
  accidental  meeting  led  to  a  renewal  of  their 
  friendship";  "seek  help  from  casual  passers-by";  "a 
  casual  meeting";  "a  chance  occurrence"  [syn:  {accidental}, 
  {casual},  {chance(a)}] 
  n  1:  a  possibility  due  to  a  favorable  combination  of 
  circumstances;  "the  holiday  gave  us  the  opportunity  to 
  visit  Washington";  "now  is  your  chance"  [syn:  {opportunity}] 
  2:  an  unknown  and  unpredictable  phenomenon  that  causes  an  event 
  to  result  one  way  rather  than  another;  "bad  luck  caused 
  his  downfall";  "it  was  a  chance  meeting"  [syn:  {luck},  {fortune}, 
  {hazard}] 
  3:  a  risk  involving  danger;  "you  take  a  chance  when  you  let  her 
  drive" 
  4:  a  measure  of  how  likely  it  is  that  some  event  will  occur; 
  "what  is  the  probability  of  rain?";  "we  have  a  good  chance 
  of  winning"  [syn:  {probability}] 
  v  1:  be  the  case  by  chance;  "I  chanced  to  meet  my  old  friend  in 
  the  street" 
  2:  take  a  risk  in  the  hope  of  a  favorable  outcome;  "When  you 
  buy  these  stocks  you  are  gambling"  [syn:  {gamble},  {risk}, 
  {hazard},  {take  chances},  {adventure},  {run  a  risk},  {take 
  a  chance}] 
  3:  come  upon  as  if  by  accident;  meet  with  "We  find  this  idea 
  in  Plato";  "I  happened  upon  the  most  wonderful  bakery  not 
  very  far  from  here";  "She  chanced  upon  an  interesting  book 
  in  the  bookstore  the  other  day"  [syn:  {find},  {happen},  {hit}, 
  {bump},  {encounter}] 
 
  From  U.S.  Gazetteer  (1990)  [gazetteer]: 
 
  Chance,  MD 
  Zip  code(s):  21816 
  Chance,  VA 
  Zip  code(s):  22439 
 
  From  Easton's  1897  Bible  Dictionary  [easton]: 
 
  Chance 
  (Luke  10:31).  "It  was  not  by  chance  that  the  priest  came  down  by 
  that  road  at  that  time,  but  by  a  specific  arrangement  and  in 
  exact  fulfilment  of  a  plan  not  the  plan  of  the  priest,  nor  the 
  plan  of  the  wounded  traveller,  but  the  plan  of  God.  By 
  coincidence  (Gr.  sungkuria)  the  priest  came  down  that  is  by 
  the  conjunction  of  two  things  in  fact  which  were  previously 
  constituted  a  pair  in  the  providence  of  God.  In  the  result  they 
  fell  together  according  to  the  omniscient  Designer's  plan  This 
  is  the  true  theory  of  the  divine  government."  Compare  the 
  meeting  of  Philip  with  the  Ethiopian  (Acts  8:26,  27).  There  is 
  no  chance"  in  God's  empire.  Chance"  is  only  another  word  for 
  our  want  of  knowledge  as  to  the  way  in  which  one  event  falls  in 
  with  another  (1  Sam.  6:9;  Eccl.  9:11). 
 




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