FORTUITOUS Synonyms: 105 Similar and Opposite Words

Q: How does the adjective 'fortuitous' differ from other similar words?

Some common synonyms of fortuitous are accidental , casual , and contingent . While all these words mean "not amenable to planning or prediction," fortuitous so strongly suggests chance that it often connotes entire absence of cause. // a series of fortuitous events

Q: When is it sensible to use 'accidental' instead of 'fortuitous'?

The meanings of accidental and fortuitous largely overlap; however, accidental stresses chance. // any resemblance to actual persons is entirely accidental

Q: When might 'casual' be a better fit than 'fortuitous'?

While in some cases nearly identical to fortuitous , casual stresses lack of real or apparent premeditation or intent. // a casual encounter with a stranger

Q: When could 'contingent' be used to replace 'fortuitous'?

Although the words contingent and fortuitous have much in common, contingent suggests possibility of happening but stresses uncertainty and dependence on other future events for existence or occurrence. // the contingent effects of the proposed law

fortuitous

adjective

fȯr-ˈtü-ə-təs

Definition of fortuitous next

as in fortunate

coming or happening by good luck especially unexpectedly your arrival just before the thunderstorm was fortuitous

Synonyms & Similar Words

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

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

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Synonym Chooser

How does the adjective fortuitous differ from other similar words?

Some common synonyms of fortuitous are accidental, casual, and contingent. While all these words mean "not amenable to planning or prediction," fortuitous so strongly suggests chance that it often connotes entire absence of cause.

a series of fortuitous events

When is it sensible to use accidental instead of fortuitous?

The meanings of accidental and fortuitous largely overlap; however, accidental stresses chance.

any resemblance to actual persons is entirely accidental

When might casual be a better fit than fortuitous?

While in some cases nearly identical to fortuitous, casual stresses lack of real or apparent premeditation or intent.

a casual encounter with a stranger

When could contingent be used to replace fortuitous?

Although the words contingent and fortuitous have much in common, contingent suggests possibility of happening but stresses uncertainty and dependence on other future events for existence or occurrence.

the contingent effects of the proposed law

Examples Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Recent Examples of fortuitous And then came the most fortuitous discovery—not in the lab and not in the wild, but in the back of a dusty cupboard at the Melbourne Museum. —

Scott Travers, Forbes, 31 Oct. 2024 Bulgarian archaeologists made the fortuitous find in July, per Reuters, during a dig at the site of the ancient city of Heraclea Sintica in Bulgaria, near its border with Greece. —

Jacqui Palumbo, CNN, 12 Dec. 2024 The plan, unveiled in 2017, was shelved just before the pandemic, a fortuitous turn that is now allowing planners to adapt to a radically different city. —

Thomas Curwen, Los Angeles Times, 22 Nov. 2024 Fast forward four years later, and the now 24-year-old still can't believe his life's fortuitous turn. —

Alex Ross, People.com, 19 Nov. 2024 See all Example Sentences for fortuitous

Recent Examples of Synonyms for fortuitous

Adjective

The show is fortunate in that, unlike The Acolyte, it was designed to theoretically have what feels like a concrete ending.

— Paul Tassi, Forbes, 15 Jan. 2025
Which was fortunate, as the film itself was an amateurish slog.

— Dennis Harvey, Variety, 15 Jan. 2025