Vol. 10 · Portmanteaus ·The Victorian portmanteau ·1897
Happenstance
happen circumstance
- Meaning
- A chance occurrence; coincidence.
- Source words
- happen + circumstance
- Coined by
- unknown
- Year
- 1897
Background
First recorded in American English; the implied second element is *circumstance*, but the blend is loose enough that some sources dispute its portmanteau status. The word has outlasted that argument.
The Victorian portmanteau
Lewis Carroll didn't invent portmanteau-making, but he named the technique and demonstrated it with enough flair that the word-class is often traced to him. Two of the words here are direct Carroll coinages.
Two words, one coinage.
Browse every portmanteau on the shelf — or cross over to the loanwords atlas.