kismet

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(kĭz'mĕt', -mĭt) pronunciation
n.
Fate; fortune.

[Turkish, from Persian qismat, from Arabic qisma, lot, from qasama, to divide, allot.]


Physics and fate may not ordinarily be mentioned in the same breath, but a New York Times article on particle physicist Lisa Randall did it:

"Preferring to stay closer to testable reality, Dr. Randall was drawn to a bottom-up approach to theoretical physics, trying to build models that explain observed phenomena and hoping to discover principles with wider application. But Dr. Randall and string theory had their own kismet."

Link: On Gravity, Oreos and a Theory of Everything

Posted November 2, 2005.

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noun

    That which is inevitably destined: destiny, fate, fortune, lot, portion, predestination. See certain/uncertain.

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pronunciation

IN BRIEF: Fate or fortune.

pronunciation It was pure kismet that Ester happen to look down into the man hole and into the eyes of her future husband.

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For a list of words related to kismet, see:

  See crossword solutions for the clue Kismet.

Kismet is a word, possibly derived from Turkish, Urdu or Persian, meaning fate or destiny, a predetermined course of events. The word likely evolved from Arabic ةسمة qisma, meaning lot, from ةسم qasama, to divide, allot. The word kismet is also used in Hindi, Bulgarian, Macedonian, Albanian, and in some dialects of Serbian as luck.

The first recorded use of the word in English was by Edward Backhouse Eastwick who used the word, spelled kismat, in his 1849 novel Dry Leaves from Young Egypt.

Kismet may also refer to:

Contents

Geography

Art and literature

Stage

Film

Comics

Music

  • Kismet (album), 2007 first major album release by artist Jesca Hoop
  • Kismet, an album collaboration of Greek and Turkish music, by Stelios Petrakis and Bijan Cherimani of the Chemirani Ensemble
  • "Kismet", a track from Harum Scarum (album) by Elvis Presley
  • "Kismet", a track from Born album by Bond, used in the Main Theme of the film Johnny English
  • "Kismet", a song on the album Thy Kingdom Gone by the band Flowing Tears
  • "Kismet", a song on German band Amon Düül II's 1979 album Only Human, featured on Dusty Fingers Volume 1
  • Kismet (Macedonian band), a 1993-1999 Australian rock group formed as an offshoot of Mizar (band)
  • "Kismet in Suburbia", a track from Thick As a Brick 2, an album by Jethro Tull frontman Ian Anderson, released in 2012 as a follow-up to Thick as a Brick, Jethro Tull's 1972 concept album

Games

Technology

Other uses

See also

  • Moirai, The Fates of Greek mythology

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Dansk (Danish)
n. - kismet, den uafvendelige skæbne

Nederlands (Dutch)
noodlot

Français (French)
n. - destin, sort, fortune

Deutsch (German)
n. - Kismet, Schicksal

Ελληνική (Greek)
n. - (θρησκ.) κισμέτ, μοίρα, πεπρωμένο

Italiano (Italian)
destino

Português (Portuguese)
n. - destino (m), sorte (f)

Русский (Russian)
судьба, рок

Español (Spanish)
n. - destino

Svenska (Swedish)
n. - kismet, öde (islam)

中文(简体)(Chinese (Simplified))
命运, 天命

中文(繁體)(Chinese (Traditional))
n. - 命運, 天命

한국어 (Korean)
n. - 운명, 숙명

日本語 (Japanese)
n. - アッラーの意志, 運命

العربيه (Arabic)
‏(الاسم) النصيب, القدر‏

עברית (Hebrew)
n. - ‮גורל, יעוד‬


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Kismet (work)
Kismet/Music From Hollywood (2000 Album by Percy Faith)
Timbuktu, musical (Classical Work)
Kismet (1920 Comedy Film)
Lee Venora (Classical Musician)