serendipitous

S1E1R1E1N1D2I1P3I1T1O1U1S1
/ˌsɛ.ɹɛnˈdɪp.ɪ.təs//ˌsɛ.ɹənˈdɪp.ɪ.təs/

adjective

by serendipity; by unexpected good fortune

“The weather was serendipitous for our vacation.”

Similar
causelessunintentionalaccidentalaccidentaryadventitiousby accidentby the bycasual
OriginProto-Indo-European *h₃édosder.? ← English serendipity ← Arabic سَرَنْدِيب (sarandīb) →
UncommonScrabble 16
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Meanings

adjectiveserendipitous (comparative more serendipitous, superlative most serendipitous)

comparative more serendipitous · superlative most serendipitous

  1. by serendipity; by unexpected good fortune

    His raise from midshipman to army cornet was serendipitous on paper, but just then, the rank of army cornet was being abolished and replaced by second lieutenant, leaving our hero in limbo, jobless.

    Synonyms: causeless, unintentional, accidental, accidentary, adventitious, by accident, by the by, casual

  2. good, beneficial, favorable

    The weather was serendipitous for our vacation.

Synonyms & antonyms

adjectiveby serendipity; by unexpected good fortune

Similar
causelessunintentionalaccidentalaccidentaryadventitiousby accidentby the bycasualcauselesschanceablefortuitousincidentallippeningoccasionalrandomunforeseenunintendedunintentionalunplanned

More synonyms by meaning

adjectivelucky in making unexpected and fortunate discoveries

Similar
lucky
Also see
accidentaladventitiousauspiciousby the bycasualcauselesscharmedfortuitoushappyincidentalluckyprovidentialunintentional

Synonym sets from Open English WordNet, CC BY 4.0.

Origin

  1. Proto-Indo-Iranian*sinȷ́ʰás
  2. Proto-Indo-Aryan*sinźʰás
  3. Sanskritसिंह (siṃha)
  4. Sanskritसिंहल (siṃhala)
  5. Proto-Indo-European*dwóh₁
  6. Proto-Indo-Iranian*dwáH
  7. Proto-Indo-Iranian*dwi-
  8. Proto-Indo-European*h₂ep-
  9. Proto-Indo-Iranian*Hā́ps
  10. Proto-Indo-Iranian*dwi-Hp-ás
  11. Sanskritद्वीप (dvīpa)
  12. Sanskritसिंहलद्वीप (siṃhaladvīpa)
  13. Prakrit*𑀲𑀻𑀳𑀮𑀤𑀻𑀯 (*sīhaladīva)
  14. Persianسرندیپ (sarandip)
  15. Arabicسَرَنْدِيب (sarandīb)
  16. EnglishSerendip
  17. Englishserendipity
  18. Proto-Indo-European*h₃ed-
  19. Proto-Indo-European*h₃édosder.?
  20. Englishserendipitous

From serendipity + -ous.

Full word history & related roots →

Translations

Catalan fortuït
  • fortuïtby unexpected good fortune
Chinese Mandarin 侥幸得到的
  • 侥幸得到的by unexpected good fortune
Finnish serendipinen
  • serendipinenby unexpected good fortune
French fortuit, sérendipiteux
  • fortuitby unexpected good fortune
  • sérendipiteuxby unexpected good fortune
Italian serendipico
  • serendipicoby unexpected good fortune
Polish szczęśliwy
  • szczęśliwyby unexpected good fortune
Portuguese providencial, favorável
  • providencialby unexpected good fortune
  • favorávelby unexpected good fortune
  • generosoby unexpected good fortune
  • fortuitoby unexpected good fortune
Spanish fortuitamente, serendípico
  • fortuitamenteby unexpected good fortune
  • serendípicoby unexpected good fortune
Cite this entry
APA

serendipitous. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 2, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/serendipitous

MLA

“serendipitous.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/serendipitous. Accessed November 2, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “serendipitous,” accessed November 2, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/serendipitous.

Source: serendipitous on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.