coincidence
Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English 5++LDOCE 5++co·in·ci·dence /kəʊˈɪnsɪdəns $ koʊ-/ ●●○ noun 1 [countable, uncountable]TIME/AT THE SAME TIME when two things happen at the same time, in the same place, or to the same people in a way that seems surprising or unusual 巧合，巧事；同时发生 → coincide, coincidental ‘I’m going to Appleby tomorrow.’ ‘What a coincidence! I’m going there too.’ “明天我要去阿普尔比。”“太巧了！我也要去那里。”by coincidence By coincidence, John and I both ended up at Yale. 巧得很，我和约翰最后都进了耶鲁大学。sheer/pure coincidence (=completely by chance) 纯属巧合 It was sheer coincidence that we were staying in the same hotel. 真是太巧了，我们就住在同一家宾馆。not a coincidence/more than coincidence (=not chance, but deliberate) 并非巧合 I think it is more than coincidence that all the complaints have come from the same group of people. 所有投诉都来自同一群人，我想这就不是巧合了。2 [singular] formalSAME when two ideas, opinions etc are the same 〔思想、观点等的〕一致，相符coincidence of a coincidence of interest between the mining companies and certain politicians 采矿公司和某些政客在利益上的一致n COLLOCATIONSadjectivessheer/pure coincidence (=complete chance)It was pure coincidence that we were on the same plane.mere coincidence (=only chance and nothing else)Is it mere coincidence that they always seem to employ men?a happy/lucky/fortunate coincidenceIt was just a happy coincidence that he was there too.an unfortunate coincidenceBy a very unfortunate coincidence, she didn’t get either of his emails.a strange/curious coincidenceWhat a strange coincidence that you were both living in Bangkok at the same time.a remarkable/amazing/extraordinary coincidenceWhat an extraordinary coincidence meeting you here!phrasesit is a coincidence thatIt was a remarkable coincidence that two people with the same name were staying at the hotel.it is not a/no coincidence that (=it is deliberate)It is no coincidence that the Government made the announcement today. be more than (a) coincidence (=there is some other explanation)When I saw him a third time, I realized it was more than just coincidence.a string/series/set of coincidencesThe accident happened because of a string of unfortunate coincidences.
Examples from the Corpus
coincidence• It was just a coincidence that we were in Paris at the same time.• What was the probability - the unvarnished statistical likelihood - of such a coincidence?• It was a coincidence that three earthquakes happened across the world in one week.• Hi Phil. What a coincidence -- we were just talking about you.• My mother is called Anna, and by coincidence my wife's mother is called Anna too.• We were all linked in a vast and rhythmic coincidence, a daisy chain of rumor, suspicion and secret wish.• By a strange coincidence the king was assassinated on the very spot where his grandfather had been killed.• After all, the coincidence could not be expected to occur so neatly every 150 million years.• It is regarded as a purely natural phenomenon which, by an unusual coincidence, occurs in the walls of their convent.What a coincidence• "Ruby's dad gave her the exact same thing that she gave us for our wedding." "You're kidding! What a coincidence."coincidence of• There is a coincidence of opinion among the board members.co·in·ci·dence noun →n COLLOCATIONS1LDOCE OnlineChineseSyllable
things Corpus two at time, same when the happen
coincidence
co‧in‧ci‧dence /kəʊˈɪnsədəns, kəʊˈɪnsɪdəns $ koʊ-/
noun
1. [uncountable and countable] when two things happen at the same time, in the same place, or to the same people in a way that seems surprising or unusual ⇨ coincide, coincidental:
‘I’m going to Appleby tomorrow.’ ‘What a coincidence! I’m going there too.’
by coincidence
By coincidence, John and I both ended up at Yale.
sheer/pure coincidence (=completely by chance)
It was sheer coincidence that we were staying in the same hotel.
not a coincidence/more than coincidence (=not chance, but deliberate)
I think it is more than coincidence that all the complaints have come from the same group of people.
2. [singular] formal when two ideas, opinions etc are the same
coincidence of
a coincidence of interest between the mining companies and certain politicians
■ adjectives
▪sheer/pure coincidence (=complete chance) It was pure coincidence that we were on the same plane.
▪mere coincidence (=only chance and nothing else) Is it mere coincidence that they always seem to employ men?
▪a happy/lucky/fortunate coincidence It was just a happy coincidence that he was there too.
▪an unfortunate coincidence By a very unfortunate coincidence, she didn’t get either of his emails.
▪a strange/curious coincidence What a strange coincidence that you were both living in Bangkok at the same time.
▪a remarkable/amazing/extraordinary coincidence What an extraordinary coincidence meeting you here!
■ phrases
▪it is a coincidence that It was a remarkable coincidence that two people with the same name were staying at the hotel.
▪it is not a/no coincidence that (=it is deliberate) It is no coincidence that the Government made the announcement today.
▪be more than (a) coincidence (=there is some other explanation) When I saw him a third time, I realized it was more than just coincidence.
▪a string/series/set of coincidences The accident happened because of a string of unfortunate coincidences.
co‧in‧ci‧dence /kəʊˈɪnsədəns, kəʊˈɪnsɪdəns $ koʊ-/
noun1. [uncountable and countable] when two things happen at the same time, in the same place, or to the same people in a way that seems surprising or unusual ⇨ coincide, coincidental:
by coincidence
sheer/pure coincidence (=completely by chance)
not a coincidence/more than coincidence (=not chance, but deliberate)
2. [singular] formal when two ideas, opinions etc are the same
coincidence of
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luck the force that causes good or bad things to happen to people 指机遇、命运、运气 ：◆ This ring has always brought me good luck. 这戒指总是给我带来好运。 chance the way that some things happen without any cause that you can see or understand 指偶然、碰巧、意外 ：◆ The results could simply be due to chance. 这结果可能纯属意外。 coincidence the fact of two things happening at the same time by chance, in a surprising way 指出人意料的巧合、巧事 ：◆ They met through a series of strange coincidences. 他们因一连串奇妙的巧合而相遇。 accident something that happens unexpectedly and is not planned in advance 指意外、偶然的事 ：◆ Their early arrival was just an accident. 他们早到仅仅是偶然而已。 fate the power that is believed to control everything that happens and that cannot be stopped or changed 指命运、天数、定数、天意 ：◆ Fate decreed that she would never reach America. 命中注定她永远到不了美国。 destiny the power that is believed to control events 指主宰事物的力量、命运之神 ：◆ I believe there's some force guiding us—call it God, destiny or fate. 我认为有某种力量在指引着我们，称之为上帝也罢，天意也罢，或是命运也罢。
fate or destiny? 用 fate 还是 destiny？
Fate can be kind, but this is an unexpected gift; just as often,fate is cruel and makes people feel helpless.Destiny is more likely to give people a sense of power: people who havea strong sense of destiny usually believe that they are meant to be great or do great things.* fate 有时是善意的，但那只是意外的恩赐；fate 也是残酷的，使人感到无能为力；destiny 更可能给人力量的感觉，have a strong sense of destiny 指人具有强烈使命感，通常认为自己必将不同凡响或成就伟业。
Patterns
by …luck/chance/coincidence/accidentIt's no coincidence/accidentthat… pure/sheer luck/chance/coincidence/accidentto believe in luck/coincidences/fate/destiny