THE WORDCRAFT DEFINITION DICTIONARY
fortuitous
adjective
Happening by chance rather than by design.
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Other meanings and uses
adjective
Turning out fortunately or providing an unexpected advantage.
The fortuitous timing of the repair spared the theater a week of canceled shows.
Local English device voice, when available. This is not a recorded dictionary pronunciation.
Read this word in Dave's Corner
The Palace Made of Plywood · paragraph 4A USEFUL DISTINCTION
Usage note
The chance sense emphasizes how an event came about. The fortunate sense emphasizes how well it turned out.
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Examples in context
A fortuitous encounter at the station reunited two old friends.
Our meeting was entirely fortuitous.
1 more example
While visiting a materials reuse shop, an exhibition designer had a fortuitous meeting with a retired stage builder.
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Related meanings
Related words can differ in tone and context; they are not always interchangeable.
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The Unexpected DiscoveryReading 1 / Open lessonAPPLY IT AND RETURN
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About this entry
This entry is part of the GlobalRPh vocabulary collection. Definitions are concise study meanings. Examples combine original teaching sentences with selected passages adapted from the supplied study notes; their source is labeled beside each example. A word may have additional specialized or historical senses.
Adapted from supplied vocabulary notes. Example written for WordCraft.
Source study sections: D, 3, 9, 17, 19.
The chance sense emphasizes how an event came about. The fortunate sense emphasizes how well it turned out.
Dictionary scope and sources