owing to chance

USAGE SUMMARY

The phrase "owing to chance" is correct and usable in written English.
It can be used to indicate that something is the result of luck or randomness rather than intention or planning. Example: "The success of the project was largely owing to chance, as we stumbled upon the right solution unexpectedly."

✓ Grammatically correct

Science

News & Media

Formal & Business

Human-verified examples from authoritative sources

Exact Expressions

7 human-written examples

The data in Table 5 were derived from 46 comparisons among cancer sites, which could have resulted in 2 or 3 significant findings owing to chance alone.

British Journal of Cancer

We also examined the consequences of the joint presence of any two by two combinations of the nine components of the Mediterranean diet score, excluding combinations of fish and seafood with the rest of the components because of the unexpected (probably owing to chance) positive association of this food group with mortality.

British Medical Journal

The large magnitude of the differences identified suggest that these findings are not owing to chance, and the finding of similar effects across different measures of exposure (i.e., self-reported smoking, serum cotinine, and urinary thiocyanate) provides further evidence that these results represent true effects.

Environmental Health Perspectives

Owing to chance factors, the treatment and the waiting-list groups were, prior to treatment, homogenous in terms of demographic variables but heterogeneous regarding headache frequency, intensity and headache index as well as on their additional disabilities measured by the RPQ, SCL-90-R and SF-36.

The Journal of Headache and Pain

This is an important limitation and raises the possibility that real savings from team-based care may not be detectable owing to chance, given our small sample sizes.

Diabetes Care

The third tool, sigscape is designed for cophylogenetic analyses where permutation tests are performed to test the null hypothesis that the host and parasite trees are similar owing to chance.

Bioinformatics

Human-verified similar examples from authoritative sources

Similar Expressions

53 human-written examples

The biggest question of all about the 30s is surely "could Hitler have been stopped?" Brendon explains how much his chancellorship owed to chance and intrigue.

The Guardian - Books

With respect to points, the individual's phenotype must be characterized by range and pattern of variation among the points, some of which owes to chance or drift, time, experimentation, and adaptation, raw material and the like.

Evolution: Education and Outreach

While this eastward trend may owe to chance, it could also be due to human-mediated modifications of shallow coastal habitats occurring earlier in the west, or limiting conditions in the east [ 25] that populations have adapted or acclimated to overtime [ 63].

BMC Evolutionary Biology

The random model estimates PR j, the chance of assigning a read of length l to taxonomy ID j owing to random chance (for simplicity the random score is not shown in Fig. 2).

Bioinformatics

And, owing to the chance mutations of shared genetic material, we have evolved in response to changing environments and geographic migration.

Evolution: Education and Outreach

Expert writing Tips

Best practice

When using "owing to chance", ensure that the context clearly supports the idea that the outcome was indeed due to random circumstances and not influenced by any deliberate action or planning. This will enhance the credibility and accuracy of your statement.

Common error

Avoid using "owing to chance" when there's evidence of underlying factors or patterns influencing the event. Overlooking these aspects can lead to misleading interpretations and inaccurate conclusions.

Linguistic Context

The phrase "owing to chance" functions as a causal adverbial phrase. It modifies a verb or clause by explaining the reason or cause of an event being related to luck or randomness. As seen in the Ludwig examples, it connects an outcome with its cause.

Expression frequency: Uncommon

Frequent in

Science

50%

News & Media

31%

Formal & Business

6%

Less common in

Encyclopedias

0%

Wiki

6%

Social Media

0%

Ludwig's WRAP-UP

In summary, "owing to chance" serves as a causal connector used to attribute outcomes to random or unpredictable events. Ludwig AI confirms its grammatical correctness and usability in written English. While slightly more formal than alternatives like "due to luck", it is widely understood and applicable in various contexts, particularly in science, news, and formal business writing. When using this phrase, ensure the context genuinely reflects randomness to avoid misattribution of causality. Its communicative purpose is to explain events as unplanned occurrences, highlighting the role of luck or randomness rather than intentional design.

More alternative expressions

Phrases that express similar concepts, ordered by semantic similarity:

due to luck

This alternative is more straightforward and emphasizes the role of luck as the cause.

because of randomness

This alternative highlights the unpredictable nature of the event or outcome.

by random occurrence

This alternative uses "occurrence" instead of "chance" to emphasize the event itself.

by happenstance

This alternative suggests that something occurred in a casual or unplanned way.

as a result of random events

This alternative is more explicit, specifying that the cause was a series of random occurrences.

as a fluke

This alternative implies an unusual or improbable occurrence.

through fortuity

This alternative is more formal and emphasizes the role of fortunate events.

through a twist of fate

This alternative suggests that external forces or destiny influenced the outcome.

coincidentally

This single-word alternative emphasizes the unplanned and simultaneous nature of the event.

accidentally

This alternative implies that something happened unintentionally.

FAQs

How can I use "owing to chance" in a sentence?

Use "owing to chance" to explain an outcome or event primarily caused by random or unpredictable circumstances. For example: "The team's victory was largely owing to chance, as their key player was injured."

What are some alternatives to "owing to chance"?

You can use alternatives like "due to luck", "by happenstance", or "accidentally" depending on the context.

Is it more formal to say "owing to chance" than "due to chance"?

"Owing to chance" is generally considered more formal than "due to chance". Choose the phrasing that best suits the tone and audience of your writing.

What is the difference between "owing to chance" and "because of chance"?

"Owing to chance" and "because of chance" are very similar in meaning, but "owing to chance" is often perceived as slightly more formal and literary in tone.