Meaning
Used to introduce something that happened purely by chance or coincidence, whether the outcome turned out to be fortunate or unfortunate.
It signals that what follows was not planned or caused by anyone’s effort, but simply came about through accident or fate.
Origin
The phrase was first popularized by William Shakespeare in The Merry Wives of Windsor (1602), where it appears as a passing remark about the unpredictable workings of fortune. Its structure echoes the older, more formal English habit of personifying luck or fate as a force with a will of its own, an idea common in Elizabethan drama, and the phrase has remained largely unchanged in everyday English ever since.
Examples
As luck would have it, the one day I forgot my umbrella was the only rainy day all week.
As luck would have it, the last seat on the train was right next to an old friend of mine.
As luck would have it, the power went out right in the middle of the final match.
A: Did you manage to catch the flight after all that traffic?
B: As luck would have it, it was delayed by twenty minutes, so we made it just in time.
Frequently asked questions
What does 'As luck would have it' mean?
Used to introduce something that happened purely by chance or coincidence, whether the outcome turned out to be fortunate or unfortunate.
It signals that what follows was not planned or caused by anyone’s effort, but simply came about through accident or fate.