fortuitous
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fortuitous
- /fɔːˈtjuːɪtəs/ UK
- /-ˈt͡ʃuː-/ UK
- /foɹˈt(j)uətəs/ US
- /-t͡ʃu-/ US
- [-ɾəs] US
- /foːˈt͡ʃʉːɘtɘs/ New Zealand
- /fɘ-/ New Zealand
- /-tjʉː-/ New Zealand
Where it comes from
Learned borrowing from Latin fortuītus (“happening by chance, accidental, random, fortuitous”), from *fortu- (“chance, fortune, luck”) + -ītus (suffix forming adjectives). *Fortu- is thought to be from *fortus, from fors (“chance, luck”) (ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *bʰer- (“to bear, carry”)) + -tus (suffix forming action nouns). Doublet of fortuity.
adjective more fortuitous · most fortuitous
-
Happening by fortune or chance; accidental, coincidental.
[I]f vve be not perverſe and vvillful, vve are to inferre that it [the tilt of the Earth's axis] vvas eſtabliſhed by a Principle that has in it Knovvledge and Counſell, not from a blind fortuitous jumbling of the parts of the Matter one againſt another, eſpecially having found before in ourſelves a
Similar: by accident, accidental, accidentary, adventitious, by the by, casual, causeless, chanceable, fortuitous, incidental, lippening, occasional · Opposite: nonfortuitous, unfortuitous
-
Happening by good fortune or success; fortunate, lucky.
And then he met John Dowsett, the great John Dowsett. The whole thing was fortuitous. This cannot be doubted.
Similar: by accident, accidental, accidentary, adventitious, by the by, casual, causeless, chanceable, fortuitous, incidental, lippening, occasional · Opposite: nonfortuitous, unfortuitous
-
Happening independently of human control; uncontrollable.
Similar: irresistible
Translations
Every language
adj happening by fortune or chance — see also accidental, coincidental
| Español | fortuito |
|---|---|
| 日本語 | 偶然 gūzen |
| 中文 | 偶然 ǒurán |
| Português | fortuito |
| Français | fortuit, fortuite |
| Deutsch | unvorhersehbar, zufällig |
| Italiano | fortuito |
| Română | fortuit, accidental, întâmplător |
| Русский | неожи́данный neožídannyj |
| Tiếng Việt | ngẫu nhiên, tình cờ |
adj happening by good fortune or success — see also fortunate, lucky
| 中文 | 僥倖 /侥幸 jiǎoxìng, 幸運 /幸运 xìngyùn |
|---|---|
| Português | afortunado |
| Deutsch | durch glücklichen Zufall (einen), glücklich, glücklicherweise |
| Русский | случа́йный slučájnyj |
| Tiếng Việt | may mắn |
adj happening independently of human control — see also uncontrollable
| 中文 | 不可抗力的 bùkěkànglì de |
|---|
Talk about this word "fortuitous." Wiktionary, via Micwyn, micwyn.com/word/fortuitous. Accessed 6 Nov. 2026. fortuitous. (n.d.). In Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Retrieved November 6, 2026, from https://micwyn.com/word/fortuitous "fortuitous." Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Accessed November 6, 2026. https://micwyn.com/word/fortuitous.Cite this
@misc{fortuitous_2026,
title = {fortuitous},
howpublished = {Wiktionary, via Micwyn},
year = {2026},
url = {https://micwyn.com/word/fortuitous},
urldate = {2026-11-06}
}
