murphy

IPA/ˌmɜː.fiz ˈlɔː/
KK[mˈɚfi]IPA/ˌmɝː.fiz ˈlɑː/

murphy — noun

1. a humorous rule saying that even a small chance of failure will usually turn int

1.nounC1
Definition

a humorous rule saying that even a small chance of failure will usually turn into a real problem

Example

The printer jammed as Hana printed her interview notes, and she muttered, 'Murphy's law.'

call it Murphy's law after a mishap

Dark clouds arrived as Malik opened the picnic basket, so everyone blamed Murphy's law.

blame Murphy's law for bad timing

Common collocations
  • Murphy's law
  • blame Murphy's law
  • call it Murphy's law
Synonyms
  • sod's law

    mainly British; it refers to the same kind of annoying bad timing

  • bad luck

    broader and less specific; it does not suggest a rule-like pattern

Grammar Patterns

call it Murphy's law

blame Murphy's law

Usage Note

Usually said as Murphy's law after an annoying event has just happened. People use it jokingly rather than as a formal scientific rule.

Common Mistakes

I failed the quiz because I did not study, so it was Murphy's law.
The lights went out just as the quiz began, so it felt like Murphy's law.
use it for a possible problem appearing at the worst moment, not for an ordinary mistake you caused yourself.

Synonym discussion

Sense: noun/1

Murphy's law and sod's law both describe the irritating pattern where the one thing that could fail seems to fail at exactly the wrong moment. Murphy's law is the more widely known label and can sound slightly playful or half-technical. Sod's law is more strongly British and often sounds more comic or annoyed. Bad luck is much broader: it can describe any unlucky event, even when no clear weak point was waiting to cause trouble. If the printer stops just before your presentation, many speakers joke about Murphy's law. If rain ruins a walk for no special reason, bad luck is usually the better phrase.

murphy ↗sod's lawbad luck ↗

Etymology

proper nameEnglish

Named after Murphy in the phrase Murphy's law, which became a humorous label for failures that appear at the worst possible moment.

First known use

1954

1954, in the meaning defined above