chance-medley
Word Rarity
Rare
Frequency: 3.28 in modern English
25
Scrabble Score
12
Letters
3
Syllables
9
Unique Chars
Meaning
noun
The killing of another in self-defence upon a sudden and unpremeditated encounter.
Countable; Uncountable
Example Sentences
- "Manſlaughter, otherwiſe called Chancemedley, is when two do fight together upon the ſudden, and by meer Chance, without any Malice precedent, and one of them doth kill the other; this alſo is Felony of Death."
- "This is true in the general right of marriage, but not in the chance-medley of every particular match."
- "Though much depends on what thy choice shall be, / Is all chance-medley, and unknown to me."
Etymology
From Old French chance medlée, literally "mingled chance", with postpositive adjective (often confused because of the fact that medley is also a noun).
Origin
- Source language: Old French