Green’s Dictionary of Slang

1. of a prostitute, to encounter the first customer of the day.

1937		‘Boxcar Bertha’ Sister of the Road (1975) 171: We work in turns ’til every girl ‘breaks luck,’ and then it’s choice.
1969		‘Iceberg Slim’ Pimp 111: Ten minutes after she got down she broke luck.
1972		(con. 1950s) D. Goines Whoreson 98: I didn’t break luck till early this morning.
1977		J. Sayles Union Dues (1978) 182: Out on the rack nearly an hour and a half and she still hadn’t broke luck.
2012		J. Robinson Gospel of the Game 3: You better hope that you break luck [...] you had better have my money, bitch.

2. in general use, to have a piece of good fortune.

1972

(con. 1960s) D. Goines Whoreson 229: I had reason to believe I just might break luck tonight.

1. (US) for a white person to have sex with a black person (esp. for the first time).

1916		H.N. Cary Sl. of Venery I 43: Changing One’s Luck – To have carnal knowledge of the black woman. A superstitiion.
1927		‘J.M. Hall’ Anecdota Americana I 106: Eager to ‘change his luck’ a white man approached a negress. ‘Ah charges two dollars,’ said the black whore.
1947		D. Burley N.Y. Amsterdam News 5 Apr. 21: Man [...] starts figuring on getting some ‘luck’ and starts sneaking around hunting one of your chicks.
1960, 1975		Wentworth & Flexner DAS 93/1: change [one’s] luck To have sexual intercourse, esp., in the South, with a Negress; used only by white males.
1961		C. Himes Pinktoes (1989) 63: Mamie’s father was a white pimp who had conceived her accidentally while changing his luck with the colored maid in the whorehouse.
1968		(con. mid–late 19C) S. Longstreet Wilder Shore 216: Various desires for perverted debauchery could be satisfied in the stalls, cribs or in alleys [...] getting one’s ashes hauled, changing one’s luck.
1972		R.A. Wilson Playboy’s Book of Forbidden Words 63: Think I’ll go uptown and change my luck.
1972		see sense 2.

2. (US gay) to perform homosexual sex for the first time.

1972

B. Rodgers Queens’ Vernacular 43: change one’s luck 1. to go to bed with a black man for the first time [...]. to perform a homosexual act for the first time.

(Aus.) to use up or run out of luck.

1916		C.J. Dennis ‘War’ in Moods of Ginger Mick 23: ’E sez to me, ‘Well, mate, I’ve done me luck; / An’ Rose is arstin’, ‘Wot about this war?’.
1941		Baker Popular Dict. Aus. Sl.

see Chinaman’s luck under Chinaman n.

(Aus.) a description of any lucky person.

1958		F.J. Hardy Four-Legged Lottery 134: Jim Roberts announced his amazing win of approaching two hundred pounds [...] and Tom Roberts said: ‘Well, I’ll be damned. We’ve got an Eric Connolly in the house!’.
1963		F.J. Hardy Legends from Benson’s Valley 73: ‘They’ve had the luck of Eric Connolly all night,’ Darky said.

(US black) to have a piece of good fortune, to have a fortuitous encounter.

1968		W.R. Burnett Cool Man 89: It’s going to get crowded, Carl told himself. But they had lucked up onto the inside track.
1971		R.D. Pharr S.R.O. (1998) 63: Some nights I would luck up on a chick and bring her home.
2013		W.D. Myers Cruisers: Oh, Snap! 24: ‘Yo, Dad, it’s not right for you to get the break that Mom wanted, and if you did luck up and get it you should at least call and apologize’.

(orig. Aus.) signifying envy, jealousy of the person addressed, i.e. I wish I had ...

[1883		Queenslander (Brisbane) 22 Dec. 6/2: If your mare is as good as she is said to be, win the race into the bargain. I only wish I had half your luck].
[1894		Yellow Book 47: I wish I had half your luck. [...] Oh, heavens, what wouldn’t I give for half your luck!].
a.1904		Cliffe & Moore [perf. Marie Lloyd] The Coster’s Wedding 🎵 And all the market blokes, they cracked some spicy jokes / For they said, ‘Wot ho! Good old Billy! ’Arf your luck’.
1920		(con. WW1) Burra Record (SA) 31 mar. 3/4: The boys simply loved us to wear new clothes. They would call out ‘When are you going to get a new frock?’ And when the men wore dress suits, they would yell, ‘Half your luck, Digger!’.
1930		Sun. Mail (Brisbane) 22 June 5/5: ‘Half your luck!’ This wistful, expression is one of the commonest, and voices a very human aspiration.
1933		Sun (Sydney) 6 July 19/4: All glad, all cheery, all saying, ‘half your luck, old boy,’ the pals who show no envy, only joy that one of the bunch should ‘click’.
1946		Wingham Chron. (NSW) 25 Jan. 6/3: Returning papers, we enjoyed a laugh and a yarn. ‘I happen to be going to that town,’ I said. ‘Half your luck,’ said my companion.
1953		News (Adelaide) 24 Feb. 23/1: The day before the businessman left for Australia he told Ken he was going home. ‘Half your luck,’ said Macca.
1969		O. White Under the Iron Rainbow 1: Half your luck, old man, half your luck! I never manage to get more than five or six days in the North West at any one time.
1974		Aus. Women’s Wkly 10 Apr. 43/4: ‘Half your luck,’ said the Governor's wife [...] on hearing of Mrs. Schultz's trip.
1986		R.G. Barrett Real Thing 86: ‘I might even give the missus a tap on the shoulder when I get into bed’ [...] ‘Half your luck,’ chuckled Les.
1991		K. Walker Peter (2001) 64: ‘But I never have nightmares,’ ‘Half your luck,’ he said, like he wasn’t a hundred percent convinced.
1999		Arcadia Flynn ‘It’s Time’ 🌐 I’m thirty six and single / Children? not a one / Half your luck ... I hear you say, / I’ll bet you’re having fun!
2002		R.G. Barrett Mystery Bay Blues 31: ‘I’m at Clover’s [...] I’ll stay at her place tonight.’ ‘Half your luck’.
2003		T. Wright Turn Right at Istanbul n.p.: It took ten minutes of knocking and ringing before the receptionist appeared and unbolted the door. He had been asleep, he said. Half your luck, I replied.
2019		C. Hammer Silver [ebook] ‘You guys are still together?’ ‘We’re working on it.’ ‘Half your luck. She’s hot’.