Etymograph

English

luck

Luck comes from Middle English luk, from Middle Dutch luc or Middle Low German lücke ‘fortune’, of obscure origin.

  1. Middle Dutchc. 1150–1500luc1‘luck, fortune’uncertain
  2. Middle Englishc. 1150–1500luk1‘good fortune’
  3. Englishearliest quotation 2004luck1

attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed deepest recorded ancestor

  1. 1 Wiktionary, English luck, which cites OED
  2. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 2004, The Crisis: “I lucked upon a seat, settled in, nodded off…”.

Lineage

  1. Middle Dutchc. 1150–1500lucWiktionary, English luck, which cites OED‘luck, fortune’uncertain
  2. Middle Englishc. 1150–1500lukWiktionary, English luck, which cites OED‘good fortune’
  3. Englishearliest quotation 2004luckWiktionary, English luck, which cites OED. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 2004, The Crisis: “I lucked upon a seat, settled in, nodded off…”

The story

From Middle English luk, lukke, from Middle Dutch luc, geluc, gelucke (‘good luck, fortune’) or Middle Low German lücke, gelücke (‘lot, fortune, fate, luck’), of obscure origin; perhaps ultimately related to German Lücke (‘gap, opening’) in the sense of "space or opportunity", hence "chance".uncertain The source flags this step as uncertain. According to the OED, it may be related to lock. A loanword into English in the 15th century (probably as a gambling term), Middle Dutch luc, gelucke has parallels with Middle High German lücke, gelücke ("luck, skill, chance, profession, livelihood"; whence Modern German Glück). Perhaps from a Frankish *galukki, derived from Proto-Germanic *lukjǭ (‘opening’). Its etymology is unknown, although there are numerous proposals as to its derivations from a number of roots.uncertain The source flags this step as uncertain.

Full etymology on Wiktionary

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Today it means

noun Something that happens to someone by chance, a chance occurrence.

Sources

Sources: Wiktionary, “luck”. By Wiktionary contributors, CC BY-SA 4.0, via kaikki.org (dump of Oct 3 2026); text adapted and restructured. Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word. License.

Etymograph / Middle Dutch luc / luck