How to Use jinx in a Sentence

jinx

1 of 2 noun
  • This energy can even cause a jinx, curses or even death.
    — Georg Szalai, HollywoodReporter, 2 June 2026
  • The entire home run derby jinx is urban legend, with no facts to back it up.
    — Houston Mitchell, latimes.com, 2019-07-09
  • Moore-McNeil hasn't missed a shot (jinx) and has 13 points.
    — Scott Horner, The Indianapolis Star, 2023-02-17
  • Brandt says the idea of that jinx stems from an early defeat in St. Louis.
    — Teresa M. Walker, chicagotribune.com, 2019-06-07
  • Thankfully for them, the original court storm was not a jinx.
    — Ryan Morik, FOXNews.com, 8 Feb. 2026
  • This is not about the Sports Illustrated jinx for a change.
    — Stefan Stevenson, star-telegram, 2017-10-24
  • But gifs, jokes, and jinxes aside, the thread was chock-full of folk remedies used to banish headaches and migraines.
    — Evelyn Wang, Glamour, 2017-12-19
  • Despite the storied history of the jinx, there are many outliers.
    — Rob Tornoe, Philly.com, 2018-01-23
  • When told of the unfortunate jinx moment, Fowler laughed.
    — Arpon Basu, New York Times, 15 Sep. 2025
  • Maybe, just maybe, she had been hit with the Sports Illustrated cover jinx.
    — Dana Hunsinger Benbow, Indianapolis Star, 2019-07-10
  • Wait a minute, the Sports Illustrated jinx isn’t real at all.
    — Joey Morona, cleveland.com, 2019-08-20
  • Baseball jinxes are baloney, but the strong run the 28-year-old Shackelford is on is for real.
    — Zach Buchanan, Cincinnati.com, 2017-09-14
  • So while the Cubs may have had a black cat jinx, Flood was never too worried about that old black magic himself.
    — Paul Lukas, SI.com, 2019-09-06
  • Turns out Danhausen isn’t the only celebrity throwing down jinxes.
    — Tony Maglio, HollywoodReporter, 3 June 2026
  • And the Radio Waves jinx has been especially strong on morning shows.
    — Ben Fong-Torres, San Francisco Chronicle, 2018-05-23
  • But these low-risk hi jinx will encourage your own littles to try new things and take chances for the adventure of learning and saving friends.
    — Katie Grant, Parents, 24 Sep. 2025
  • As the liquid erupted, the jinx-free silence that had lingered in the clubhouse was finally broken.
    — Mitch Bannon, New York Times, 22 Sep. 2025
  • Plus, a look at how several stars this decade, including Sam Smith, are beating the sophomore jinx.
    — Xander Zellner, Billboard, 2017-09-23
  • Is there a greater jinx going than being universally declared the best team in the wide-open NFC?
    — Mark Craig, Star Tribune, 2020-11-14
  • Is this an attempt at a reverse jinx to repay my karmic debt from my 2012 World Series prediction?
    — Grant Brisbee, New York Times, 29 Sep. 2025
  • But until they are knocked off, South Africa still has history on their side and have reminded India of their jinx in a battle of the mind games.
    — Tristan Lavalette, Forbes, 2021-12-26
  • The Patriots had never won a playoff game in Denver, but the Mile High jinx is now officially over.
    — Will Richmond, The Providence Journal, 26 Jan. 2026
  • The jinx appeared to return last season in the round of 16, a tie that went to penalties in the second leg at Atletico’s Metropolitano stadium.
    — Dermot Corrigan, New York Times, 10 Mar. 2026
  • No sophomore jinx for shortstop Cat Petteys, the Big East Freshman of the Year in 2025.
    — Dom Amore, Hartford Courant, 26 Apr. 2026
  • The white-haired trainer smashed a jinx that stood for 136 years when Justify splashed through the slop to win the Kentucky Derby by 2½ lengths on Saturday.
    — Beth Harris, BostonGlobe.com, 2018-05-05
  • Diego Simeone’s team have been knocked out of the Champions League by city rivals Real Madrid five times from the 2014 final onwards, giving that ‘jinx’ fresh meaning.
    — Dermot Corrigan, New York Times, 10 Mar. 2026
  • An announcer jinx added to the Michigan Wolverines’ issues in their 24-13 loss against the Oklahoma Sooners on Saturday night.
    — Ryan Gaydos, FOXNews.com, 7 Sep. 2025
  • Petteys, the Big East Freshman of the Year in 2025, has made the classic leap as a sophomore, with no sign of a jinx or slump that sometimes comes with having already accomplished something special.
    — Dom Amore, Hartford Courant, 30 Apr. 2026
  • McTominay has also been in exceptional form for the Scottish national team during the recent qualifying cycle, and his performance will be crucial if Scotland is going to break the 72-year-long jinx of never having advanced to the knockout stage of a World Cup.
    — Tushaar Kuthiala, Encyclopedia Britannica, 22 June 2026
  • After reading your recent diatribe likening Bo Nix’s ankle, Cale Makar’s shoulder and Nathan MacKinnon’s knee to a Billy Goat-esque jinx, my fingers almost fell off from playing the world’s smallest violin for hours on end.
    — Dp Opinion, Denver Post, 29 May 2026

jinx

2 of 2 verb
  • His luck has been so bad he feels jinxed.
  • I thought they were going to win but I didn't say so because I didn't want to jinx them.
  • But that might have jinxed Ecuador.
    — Tom Ignudo, CBS News, 15 June 2026
  • The place, as any Liberian will tell you, is both haunted and jinxed.
    — Helene Cooper, New York Times, 29 Oct. 2017
  • But maybe, just maybe, Kelce has already jinxed himself?
    — Lisa Gutierrez, Kansas City Star, 27 May 2026
  • Quintana didn’t want to jinx it and say anything to his family.
    — Jeff Seidel, Detroit Free Press, 7 June 2019
  • So, afraid that switching the $20 ticket might jinx her chances, the woman kept it.
    — Paloma Chavez, PEOPLE, 30 Apr. 2026
  • Frequent changes or unpredictable events can jinx your efforts.
    — oregonlive, 7 Apr. 2020
  • At the risk of jinxing the Pelicans the rest of the way, this series looks over.
    — NOLA.com, 19 Apr. 2018
  • Nobody wants to jinx anything, nobody wants to make any assumptions.
    — Ann Killion, SFChronicle.com, 8 June 2018
  • In an attempt to not jinx himself, Doncic raised his right hand again and twice tapped his knuckles to his head.
    — Dallas News, 20 Oct. 2022
  • Of all the seasons Russell Wilson has played in the league, this would be the worst one to jinx him.
    — Matt Calkins, The Seattle Times, 3 Sep. 2018
  • But jinxing is a very important science in the space reporting field.
    — Recode Staff, Recode, 24 Apr. 2018
  • Borschberg had been nervous not to jinx the final leg of the mission, and his fear would later be considered foresight.
    — Darren Orf, Popular Mechanics, 7 July 2013
  • Hart stopped short of making any predictions to avoid jinxing Villanova.
    — Tania Ganguli, latimes.com, 2 Apr. 2018
  • This column is mostly just an attempt to jinx us into something resembling real drama over the next two weeks.
    — Andrew Sharp, SI.com, 30 May 2018
  • Grant instead heard whispers from teammates and got a couple of exclamatory high fives, but there was no jinxing him.
    — Stephen Borelli, USA TODAY, 31 Mar. 2023
  • At the risk of jinxing it, January is kicking off with nearly perfect winter weather.
    — OregonLive.com, 2 Jan. 2018
  • Carolina Panthers head coach Ron Rivera knocked on the table to avoid jinxing his good fortune.
    — Jourdan Rodrigue, charlotteobserver, 15 Sep. 2017
  • The next season, a billboard near their hotel greeted the Cowboys boasting that Dallas would be jinxed by being forced to wear blue again.
    — Teresa M. Walker, chicagotribune.com, 7 June 2019
  • The New Republic’s Walter Shapiro just jinx the entire country?
    — Jason Linkins, The New Republic, 11 Feb. 2023
  • She was given the opportunity to ditch the headband for the finale, but then was reminded that cooking without wearing one might jinx her.
    — Cheryl V. Jackson, The Indianapolis Star, 16 Sep. 2021
  • Page has a number of exciting projects coming up, and even more exciting rumors swirling around, but the private star won't jinx anything with speculation.
    — Elizabeth Logan, Glamour, 26 May 2021
  • Footballers tend to be superstitious, and Arsenal’s players have been wary of jinxing a potential title.
    — James McNicholas, New York Times, 19 May 2026
  • Although interest is widespread, insiders won't discuss it publicly for fear of jinxing their favorite candidates.
    — Edmund H. Mahony, courant.com, 30 June 2017
  • Although the hospital executive offered to explain the situation if Oberst called back, Oberst didn't want to jinx it.
    — Rebekah L. Sanders, The Arizona Republic, 29 Oct. 2020
  • The breaking of the Western Conference finals jinx last spring also puts an end to the question that the Clippers can be built for a championship.
    — Bill Plaschke, Los Angeles Times, 23 Sep. 2021
  • Sports scientists have yet to determine the jinxing powers of your humble Sliders correspondent.
    — Tyler Kepner, New York Times, 2 May 2025
  • Lobbing up prayers at the end of Game 7 last year, having his wife jinx us on twitter, inserting his unwanted opinion into politics and overall stealing our mojo.
    — Daniel Mano, The Mercury News, 11 Mar. 2017
  • Not to jinx things, but Díaz tore a tendon in his knee while celebrating a victory in the 2023 WBC and missed the season.
    — Assistant Sports Editor, Los Angeles Times, 5 Feb. 2026

Some of these examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'jinx.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

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