1
as in lucky
coming or happening by good luck especially unexpectedly
your arrival just before the thunderstorm was fortuitous
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in accidental
happening by chance
firmly believes that the creation of the universe was something other than just the fortuitous coming together of particles of matter
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Recent Examples of fortuitous
Over time, astronomers using Hubble and other telescopes managed to glimpse galaxies even farther away using clever techniques such as fortuitous gravitational lensing.
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Phil Plait, Scientific American, 25 Dec. 2025
The location itself is fortuitous.
—Folasade Ologundudu, Essence, 23 Dec. 2025
The decision to paint with tempera, the same medium used to create those Arabic maps, proved fortuitous.
—Zoe Si, New Yorker, 19 Dec. 2025
Harold and Kumar was very fortuitous in a really fun way.
—Tony Maglio, HollywoodReporter, 17 Dec. 2025
See All Example Sentences for fortuitous
Recent Examples of Synonyms for fortuitous
Adjective
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Chevron Knitted Chunky Throw Blanket Give the gift of warmth with this ultra-soft chunky throw blanket that’ll wrap the lucky recipient in a luxurious cocoon.—
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The usual Saturday full of big money Florida Lottery draw games — Cash4Life, Florida Lotto, Fantasy 5, Powerball — came up lucky in a major way for only one player and on the day’s first draw.—
Adjective
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Elvyn Yohel Ramos Routt County Investigators also said Ramos filed an insurance claim reporting the fire as accidental.—
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In another show, with a lesser writer, such incongruities could be read as character inconsistencies, accidental oversights, mistakes.—
Adjective
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Ahmad Moten was fortunate not to be called for what was clearly a late hit.—
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At this point, chalk it up to a bad deal all around that Bryant was fortunate to come out the other side of in fairly good shape.—
Adjective
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The whimsical cover introduces readers to Saffy and Lumo, two best friends whose devotion to their favorite foods leads to an unexpected, and very literal, transformation.—
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While the ordeal was incredibly frustrating for Johnson, updates on his unusual guest have been an unexpected distraction and obsession for a community that has lost so much.—
Adjective
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In January 2025, Lane posted a photo on Instagram of himself hugging Layla and wishing her a happy birthday.—
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Kinnear, though, is happy with the lineup.—
Adjective
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That feels a little too coincidental, but that’s the story I was told.—
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And while the timing may be coincidental, the tightening comes as some CEOs mandate using artificial intelligence to accomplish work tasks before requesting more headcount.—
Cite this Entry
“Fortuitous.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/fortuitous. Accessed 13 Jan. 2026.
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