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fortunate

[fawr-chuh-nit]

adjective

having good fortune; receiving good from uncertain or unexpected sources; lucky: a fortunate young actor who got the lead in the play.

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

for·tu·nate·ly, adverb

for·tu·nate·ness, noun

qua·si-for·tu·nate, adjective

qua·si-for·tu·nate·ly, adverb

su·per·for·tu·nate, adjective

EXPAND

su·per·for·tu·nate·ly, adverb

COLLAPSE

Can be confused: 1. felicitous, fortuitous, fortunate, fortitude (see usage note at fortuitous); 2. fortuitous, fortunate (see synonym and usage notes at fortuitous; see synonym note at the current entry).

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.

Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2012.
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Link To fortunate

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Fortunate is always a great word to know.

So is ort. Does it mean:

a scrap or morsel of food left at a meal.

the offspring of a zebra and a donkey.

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Example Sentences

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.

Even for couples fortunate or pragmatic enough to share a religion, marriage overseen by the religious authorities has drawbacks.

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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.

Even for couples fortunate or pragmatic enough to share a religion, marriage overseen by the religious authorities has drawbacks.

We felt fortunate to have such a privileged glimpse of another world.

The jet streams push weather across the globe, blessing some areas with abundant rain and desertifying less fortunate regions.

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.

Fortunate he wasn't shot on the spot, he accepted terms.

She will be missed by our firm and the clients who were fortunate to work with her.

In that instance, the department thinks itself fortunate to have them for a semester, and pays them accordingly.

And there are various government schemes to relieve pressures on less fortunate borrowers.

So someday, the wild vet's fortunate discovery could benefit people.

We are fortunate that this and a handful of regions are all that could have supported hunter gatherers during this cold period.

For those who weren't fortunate enough to win, all is not lost.

Schweitzer is fortunate that this condition does not exist at her school.

Your correspondent escaped unsmeared, but several of his neighbours have been less fortunate.

Photography came later and could be described as a fortunate accident.

Our family is fortunate to have access to several dairy farms which are certified by the state to sell raw milk.

Barring tragedies, children in these years inhabit a sheltered, more benign world-and fortunate parents enjoy visiting rights.

We were fortunate to own several hectares of forest and fenced in several to create as natural a setting as possible.

But not all fast-food companies have been as fortunate.

But in the years that we've known her, other leopards have been less fortunate.

The others always have more luck and are more fortunate in being productive.

We were fortunate that the dirt runway in this area could handle small cargo planes.

Thousands of the more fortunate young people danced to their jazz carnival.

We were fortunate to go to a watering hole with herds of impala, zebra and wildebeest.

We were fortunate enough to see a young whale jump over its mother.

He will be missed by all who were fortunate enough to know him.

Essick says he has been fortunate to travel to all seven continents in search of compelling pictures.

Global networking, heterogeneous funding and fortunate political timing have allowed the project to progress rapidly.

We share the same discipline and are fortunate enough to teach at the same university.

But some less fortunate people actually have to set an alarm.

For each visitor who has been foresighted or fortunate enough to secure tickets.

Some of them are fortunate because they start from positions of relative strength.

Also makes you realize how fortunate you are the the true meaning of happiness.

We are fortunate that real science is based on accurate observation, reporting, and verification of theories.

We have indeed been fortunate to witness the speed of this animal going after a herd of deer.

But this fortunate balance between loss and gain likely won't last.

The authors were inspired by an accidental but fortunate observation.

Never say that any one is fortunate till you witness the close of his or her life.

It is fortunate that the protesters, upon whose death you muse, will probably never read your newspaper.

Captured this when fortunate enough to be given a private tour of the rock when they were closing up for the evening.

It certainly is for those fortunate enough to get one.

Most retired racehorses are not nearly as fortunate.

But that fortunate group accounts for only a small part of the postdoc population.

Shifting demand to the fortunate sector that has won aid from the unfortunate one that has not will only exacerbate the upheaval.

Triggerfish wreak such havoc on less fortunate reef dwellers that smaller fish often follow them to feast on their leftovers.

If you're fortunate enough to have the steady hands of surgeon then by all means, freehand it.

What they have in common is a concern for the needy and those less fortunate than themselves.

The rest of you are fortunate to have a more human and natural means of soliciting these letters.

Those not fortunate enough to display what nature graciously bestowed have a variety of options to amend physical qualities.

But not everyone is fortunate enough to have an island or lake to study.

McQueen, of this city, was one of the fortunate few who saw the wonder.

However, any professor fortunate enough to receive that perk today should not expect a tax deduction.

Very few seem to have the fortunate inclination to profit by going against the grain.

We're fortunate that the community is the main actor proposing and driving the process.

Bugorski thinks of himself as a fortunate exception: a man in reasonable health, able to continue living a full life.

Poertner will be fortunate to receive enough cars to supply the demand.

The existence of less fortunate doesn't make one's own concerns somehow invalid.

Lambert is not paying less in taxes than those less fortunate.

We are also extremely fortunate to be working with a group of people who do not want to see all lions disappear.

If you're fortunate enough to get an interview, don't even think about trying to wing your way through a case question.

Even less fortunate was my seatmate on the bus, who tried to roll a joint and smoke it outside the station.

He was dedicated and generous to those less fortunate.

If you are fortunate to receive funding, there will be more rules and regulations to follow.

She will continue to be an inspiration to us, and will be dearly missed by all who were fortunate enough to know her.

His life was a blessing to those fortunate to know him.

Some jazz record labels are fortunate enough to catch the spirit of a moment.

Our profound and sincere condolences to her family and those who were fortunate enough to call her their friend.

His warmth, elegance, wisdom and generosity enriched the lives of everyone who was fortunate to have known him.

Imre had his mind and heart open to those less fortunate than himself.

The deft touch of her personal poems and keen written observations filled those fortunate enough to receive them with delight.

Fortunate is the hero who escapes impalement upon the facile pen of a lady diarist.

He will be remembered for his wisdom, kindness and generosity to all those fortunate to have shared in his life.

COLLAPSE

Collins

World English Dictionary

fortunate (ˈfɔːtʃənɪt)

—*adj*
1.	having good luck; lucky
2.	occurring by or bringing good fortune or luck; auspicious

'fortunateness

—n

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 10th Edition
2009 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009
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Etymonline

Word Origin & History

fortunate

late 14c., L. fortunatus, from fortunare, from fortuna (see fortune). Related: Fortunately. Fortunate Islands "mythical abode of the blessed dead, in the Western Ocean," early 15c., translates L. Fortunatae Insulae.

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enviable face felicitous feminine rhyme gracious happiness

Matching Quote

"And I thought the dead, who have already died, more fortunate than the living, who are still alive; but better than both is the one who has not yet been, and has not seen the evil deeds that are done under the sun."

-unknown author

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