Webster
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Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary · 1913

Fortuitous

For·tu′i·tous, a. [L. fortuitus; akin to forte, adv., by chance, prop. abl. of fors, fortis, chance. See Fortune.] 1. Happening by chance; coming or occuring unexpectedly, or without any known cause; chance; as, the fortuitous concourse of atoms.

It was from causes seemingly fortuitous . . . that all the mighty effects of the Reformation flowed. Robertson.

So as to throw a glancing and fortuitous light upon the whole. Hazlitt.

2. (LAw) Happening independently of human will or means of foresight; resulting from unavoidable physical causes. Abbott.

Syn. — Accidental; casual; contingent; incidental. See Accidental.

— For·tu′i·tous·ly, adv. — For·tu′i·tous·ness, n.

Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary, Noah Porter, editor (Springfield, Mass.: G. & C. Merriam, 1913). Public domain. Text as transcribed by MICRA, Inc., from Project Gutenberg. Changed for Deep Dive Bible: Greek, which our source spelled in Latin letters, set in Greek letters; entries of one spelling merged into one article; Greek words our source left out (shown as “?”), read from the 1898 printing, from the same plates (the Library of Congress’s copy), where the place could be found with certainty.