THE IDIOM COLLECTION LEARN & PRACTISE
Hit the jackpot
Understand the meaning. See it in context. Make it yours.
01 / UNDERSTAND
Meaning in plain English
To have great success or luck, especially unexpectedly.
02 / SEE IT IN CONTEXT
The expression in a sentence
- They hit the jackpot when their app went viral.
03 / CHECK YOUR UNDERSTANDING
Quick idiom quiz
Try the question without looking back, then write a sentence of your own. You can retry as often as you like.
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Can you recall the expression?
Complete the example using the expression from this lesson.
They ________ when their app went viral.
Show the answer
Hit the jackpot — To have great success or luck, especially unexpectedly.
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Make it yours
Write one sentence using “Hit the jackpot” about your own life.
Check your sentence
Does your sentence match this meaning?
To have great success or luck, especially unexpectedly.
Compare: They hit the jackpot when their app went viral.
Check the spelling and how the expression fits the sentence. Your example can be different.
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More ways to understand and use it
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How to use this expression
Outside its gambling meaning, this informal expression describes an exceptionally fortunate result. It can concern a discovery, opportunity or purchase. The verb “hit” has the same form in the present and past.
More examples
We hit the jackpot at the library: it had every book on our reading list.
She felt she had hit the jackpot when the perfect workspace became available.
Check your understanding
Can someone hit the jackpot without winning money?
Answer: Yes. Figuratively it can mean having great luck or finding exactly what they need.
Lucky success outside gambling
A charity shop customer finds exactly the out-of-print book she has wanted for years. “I’ve hit the jackpot!” she says.
Think it through: What makes this a figurative use?
Check the explanation
There is no prize machine or betting here. The customer treats her unusually fortunate discovery as a big win. Use the phrase for a result that feels especially lucky or rewarding, rather than every small routine success.
Your turn: Invent a fortunate discovery in a library, garden or second-hand shop and describe it with the idiom.
Compare expressions: Surprises, success and endings
An event can be unexpected, unusually successful or deliberately brought to an end. These expressions describe different outcomes; they are not interchangeable.
Try the situation question and check your answer →