Fortunately means by good luck or good fortune. When something happens fortunately, it means things worked out well even though they might not have.

If you forget your lunch but your friend fortunately brought extra food to share, luck was on your side. If a family's car breaks down but fortunately stops right in front of a repair shop, that's a lucky break. The word captures that sense of relief when circumstances turn out better than they could have.

People often use fortunately when telling a story to mark the moment when things could have gone wrong but didn't. “I left my project on the bus, but fortunately the driver found it and saved it for me.” The word signals a turning point from potential disaster to actual success.

The opposite is unfortunately, which marks when luck goes the other way. Understanding this pair helps you recognize how much of life involves circumstances beyond our control, and how we describe those moments when chance works in our favor rather than against us.