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Serendipity vs False - What's the difference?

serendipity | false |

As a noun serendipity

is an unsought, unintended, and/or unexpected, but fortunate, discovery and/or learning experience that happens by accident.

As an adjective false is

(label) one of two states of a boolean variable; logic.

serendipity

English

Noun

(wikipedia serendipity)
  • An unsought, unintended, and/or unexpected, but fortunate, discovery and/or learning experience that happens by accident.
  • A combination of events which are not individually beneficial, but occurring together produce a good or wonderful outcome.
  • * Serendipity is when you find things you weren't looking for because finding what you ''are'' looking for is so damn difficult . – , speech at TED
  • * The most random serendipity''' brought the two of us together, and now, we are happily married! If I was just 15 seconds slower, I'd have never met her!'' - '''1754 Horace Walpole, ''The Letters of Horace Walpole , vol. 2, Letter 90, To Sir Horace Mann, Arlington Street, Jan. 28, 1754. The Project Gutenberg Etext of The Letters of Horace Walpole, Volume 2
  • * This discovery, indeed, is almost of that kind which I call Serendipity', a very expressive word, which, as I have nothing better to tell you, I shall endeavour to explain to you: you will understand it better by the derivation than by the definition. I once read a silly fairy tale, called "The Three Princes of Serendip;" as their Highnesses travelled, they were always making discoveries, by accidents and sagacity, of things which they were not in quest of: for instance, one of them discovered that a mule blind of the right eye had travelled the same road lately, because the grass was eaten only on the left side, where it was worse than on the right – now do you understand ' Serendipity ? One of the most remarkable instances of this accidental Sagacity, (for you must observe that no discovery of a thing you are looking for comes under this description,) was of my Lord Shaftsbury, who, happening to dine at Lord Chancellor Clarendon's, found out the marriage of the Duke of York and Mrs. Hyde, by the respect with which her mother treated her at table.
  • Usage notes

    Serendipity is sometimes used loosely as a synonym for luck; more careful usage, particularly in science, emphasizes specifically "finding something when looking for something else,'' thanks to ''an observant mind ". The term was virtually unknown until the 1870s, and gained currency in the early 20th century. It became popularized at mid-century, and is now widely used.

    Antonyms

    * Murphy's law * perfect storm

    Derived terms

    * serendipitous * serendipitously

    References

    * Goodman, Leo A. Notes on the Etymology of Serendipity and Some Related Philological Observations, Modern Language Notes, The Johns Hopkins University Press, Vol. 76, No. 5 (May, 1961), pp. 454–457. ( JSTOR) * Merton, Robert K.; Barber, Elinor G. The Travels and Adventures of Serendipity: A Study in Historical Semantics and the Sociology of Science , Princeton University Press, December 2003, ISBN 978-0691117546 * Remer, Theodore G., ed. Serendipity and the Three Princes, from the Peregrinaggio of 1557, University of Oklahoma Press, 1965. LCC 65-10112

    false

    English

    Adjective

    (er)
  • Untrue, not factual, factually incorrect.
  • *{{quote-book, year=1551, year_published=1888
  • , title= A New English Dictionary on Historical Principles: Founded Mainly on the Materials Collected by the Philological Society , section=Part 1, publisher=Clarendon Press, location=Oxford, editor= , volume=1, page=217 , passage=Also the rule of false position, with dyuers examples not onely vulgar, but some appertaynyng to the rule of Algeber.}}
  • Based on factually incorrect premises: false legislation
  • Spurious, artificial.
  • :
  • *
  • *:At her invitation he outlined for her the succeeding chapters with terse military accuracy?; and what she liked best and best understood was avoidance of that false modesty which condescends, turning technicality into pabulum.
  • (lb) Of a state in Boolean logic that indicates a negative result.
  • Uttering falsehood; dishonest or deceitful.
  • :
  • Not faithful or loyal, as to obligations, allegiance, vows, etc.; untrue; treacherous.
  • :
  • *(John Milton) (1608-1674)
  • *:I to myself was false , ere thou to me.
  • Not well founded; not firm or trustworthy; erroneous.
  • :
  • *(Edmund Spenser) (c.1552–1599)
  • *:whose false foundation waves have swept away
  • Not essential or permanent, as parts of a structure which are temporary or supplemental.
  • (lb) Out of tune.
  • Noun

    (en noun)
  • One of two options on a true-or-false test.
  • Synonyms

    * * See also

    Antonyms

    * (untrue) real, true

    Derived terms

    * false attack * false dawn * false friend * falsehood * falseness * falsify * falsity

    Adverb

    (en adverb)
  • Not truly; not honestly; falsely.
  • * Shakespeare
  • You play me false .

    Anagrams

    * * 1000 English basic words ----