individual misfortune

USAGE SUMMARY

The phrase "individual misfortune" is correct and usable in written English.
It can be used to refer to the specific hardships or unfortunate events experienced by a single person. Example: "While the community faced challenges, each member dealt with their individual misfortune in their own way."

✓ Grammatically correct

News & Media

Science

Academia

Human-verified examples from authoritative sources

Exact Expressions

2 human-written examples

The movie's pessimism is extreme, but it feels rooted in the streets and folklore of Mexico City, where experience melds into legend and individual misfortune is part of life's infinite danger.

The New Yorker

Kinamon's death reflects more than an individual misfortune.

Los Angeles Times

Human-verified similar examples from authoritative sources

Similar Expressions

58 human-written examples

When Overend Gurney collapsed in 1866, it undid once and for all the sense that, give or take a few individual misfortunes, capitalism was a moral force that rewarded skill and hard work.

The Guardian - Business

As the court said, in one of its other decisions of that day: "When public evils ensue from individual misfortunes or needs, the legislature may strike at the evil at its source".

The Guardian - Opinion

As long as such effects were confined to upper-class adults like Samuel Taylor Coleridge, Thomas de Quincey or Florence Nightingale, they could be treated as individual misfortunes; but when they were observed among the productive classes and their children, moral indifference was hard to sustain.

The Guardian - Books

And when an exception is misrepresented as a rule, our individual misfortunes, instead of seeming to us quasi-inevitable aspects of life, will weigh down on us like particular curses.

Forbes

First, it should be recalled that, for our egalitarian ancestors with uniquely prolonged parental responsibilities, one obvious benefit of team solidarity and enlightened teammate choice becomes the protection that they provide against individual misfortunes of all sorts (sicknesses, disabling injuries, etc)., any one of which can jeopardize many years of parental investment.

Human Nature

Some foreclosures result from investment firms making poor decisions -- I have no problem with that -- but others are the result of an individual's misfortune.

The New York Times - Magazine

In the broadest sense, insurance is meant to spread the costs of an individual's misfortune — illness, death, fire, flood — across society.

The New York Times

A large fire was triggered following the first aftershock at a shopping center in Scotia that destroyed four businesses, with the resulting damage at that site alone estimated at $15 million, and was the largest individual financial misfortune of the sequence of earthquakes.

Wikipedia

Individuals' personal misfortunes, however, could explain at most half of the variation in stock ownership, the authors reckon.

The Economist

Expert writing Tips

Best practice

When using "individual misfortune", ensure that the context clearly indicates that the misfortune is specific to a single person and not a broader group or situation. This distinction is key to the phrase's meaning.

Common error

Avoid using "individual misfortune" when referring to widespread problems or systemic issues. This phrase is best suited for describing hardships that uniquely affect one person.

Linguistic Context

The phrase "individual misfortune" functions as a noun phrase where "individual" acts as an adjective specifying the type of misfortune. It refers to a specific instance of bad luck or adversity that affects a single person. As Ludwig AI states, the phrase is correct and usable.

Expression frequency: Uncommon

Frequent in

News & Media

50%

Science

30%

Academia

20%

Less common in

Encyclopedias

0%

Wiki

0%

Formal & Business

0%

Ludwig's WRAP-UP

In summary, "individual misfortune" is a grammatically correct and usable phrase to describe a specific hardship experienced by a single person. Ludwig AI confirms its validity, and while it isn't an extremely common phrase, it is appropriate for formal and neutral contexts, particularly in news, scientific, and academic writing. When using this phrase, ensure the context clearly indicates a misfortune that is specific to one person and not a collective issue. Remember that alternatives like "personal adversity" or "personal tragedy" might be more suitable depending on the emotional tone desired.

More alternative expressions

Phrases that express similar concepts, ordered by semantic similarity:

personal misfortune

Direct synonym focusing on the personal aspect of the bad luck.

personal adversity

Focuses on hardship from a personal perspective, emphasizing the challenging nature of the event.

private hardship

Highlights the personal and often concealed nature of the difficulty.

individual setback

Emphasizes a temporary impediment or reverse in progress for a person.

personal tragedy

Implies a more severe and deeply impactful unfortunate event.

isolated adversity

Emphasizes that the hardship is specific to one person and not widespread.

unfortunate circumstance

Downplays the agency, focusing on the coincidental nature of the difficulty.

stroke of bad luck

Highlights the role of chance or fate in bringing about the difficulty.

personal woe

A more literary or archaic way of describing personal suffering or grief.

unhappy incident

A general term for an unpleasant event affecting a single person.

FAQs

How can I use "individual misfortune" in a sentence?

You can use "individual misfortune" to describe a specific hardship experienced by one person, like: "Despite the community's overall success, each member faced their own "individual misfortune"".

What's a good alternative to "individual misfortune"?

Depending on the context, you can use alternatives like "personal tragedy", "private hardship", or "personal setback".

Is it appropriate to use "individual misfortune" in formal writing?

Yes, "individual misfortune" is appropriate for formal writing, especially when discussing the specific challenges faced by an individual. However, consider the emotional tone and whether a more empathetic phrase like "personal adversity" might be more suitable.

What is the difference between "individual misfortune" and "collective misfortune"?

"Individual misfortune" refers to a hardship affecting a single person, while "collective misfortune" refers to a widespread hardship affecting a group or community. For example, a job loss is an "individual misfortune", whereas a recession causing widespread job losses is a collective one.