fortunate

[fawr-chuh-nit] /ˈfɔr tʃə nɪt/
adjective
1.
having good fortune; receiving good from uncertain or unexpected sources; lucky:
a fortunate young actor who got the lead in the play.
2.
bringing or indicating good fortune; resulting favorably; auspicious:
She made a fortunate decision to go on to medical school.
Origin
1350-1400; Middle English fortunat < Latin fortūnātus made prosperous or happy (past participle of fortūnāre). See fortune, -ate1
Related forms
fortunately, adverb
fortunateness, noun
quasi-fortunate, adjective
quasi-fortunately, adverb
superfortunate, adjective
superfortunately, adverb
Can be confused
felicitous, fortuitous, fortunate (see usage note at fortuitous)
Synonyms
1. advantageous, successful, prosperous. Fortunate, happy, lucky refer to persons who enjoy, or events that produce, good fortune. Fortunate implies that the success is obtained by the operation of favorable circumstances more than by direct effort; it is usually applied to grave or large matters (especially those happening in the ordinary course of things): fortunate in one's choice of a wife; a fortunate investment. Happy emphasizes a pleasant ending or something that happens at just the right moment: By a happy accident I received the package on time. Lucky, a more colloquial word, is applied to situations that turn out well by chance: lucky at cards; my lucky day.
Examples from the web for fortunate
  • We were fortunate to have such an amazing lady in our lives.
  • It's fortunate that someone who has spent a lifetime thinking about them now has the ear of the wider world.
  • We felt fortunate to have such a privileged glimpse of another world.
  • Some college students are fortunate enough to have access to a communal kitchen space in their dorm.
  • Those fortunate enough to have driven it still talk about it, in almost reverential tones.
  • Yale was fortunate to have three of her representatives.
  • Fanning feels fortunate to be working in a unionized job with benefits.
  • Future generations of pensioners will not be so fortunate.
  • But other animals, such as zebras, were not so fortunate.
  • It is fortunate that some economists are beginning to recognize it.
British Dictionary definitions for fortunate

fortunate

/ˈfɔːtʃənɪt/
adjective
1.
having good luck; lucky
2.
occurring by or bringing good fortune or luck; auspicious
Derived Forms
fortunateness, noun
Word Origin and History for fortunate
adj.

late 14c., from Latin fortunatus "prospered, prosperous; lucky, happy," past participle of fortunare "to make prosperous," from fortuna (see fortune). Fortunate Islands "mythical abode of the blessed dead, in the Western Ocean," early 15c., translates Latin Fortunatae Insulae.