In hell shall they be all fortroden of devils.
Chaucer.
For"tress (?), n.; pl. Fortresses (#). [F. forteresse, OF. forteresce,
fortelesce, LL. foralitia, fr. L. fortis strong. See Fort, and cf.
Fortalice.] A fortified place; a large and permanent fortification,
sometimes including a town; a fort; a castle; a stronghold; a place of
defense or security.
Syn. -- Fortress, Fortification, Castle, Citadel. A fortress is
constructed for military purposes only, and is permanently garrisoned;
a fortification is built to defend harbors, cities, etc.; a castle is a
fortress of early times which was ordinarily a palatial dwelling; a
citadel is the stronghold of a fortress or city, etc.
For"tress, v. t. To furnish with a fortress or with fortresses; to
guard; to fortify. Shak.
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.
For*tu"i*ty (?), n. [Cf. F. fortuitÈ.] Accident; chance; casualty. D.
Forbes (1750).
For"tu*nate (?; 135), a. [L. fortunatus, p. p. of fortunare to make
fortunate or prosperous, fr. fortuna. See Fortune, n.] 1. Coming by
good luck or favorable chance; bringing some good thing not foreseen as
certain; presaging happiness; auspicious; as, a fortunate event; a
fortunate concurrence of circumstances; a fortunate investment.
2. Receiving same unforeseen or unexpected good, or some good which was
not dependent on one's own skill or efforts; favored with good forune;
lucky.
Syn. -- Auspicious; lucky; prosperous; successful; favored; happy. --
Fortunate, Successful, Prosperous. A man is fortunate, when he is
favored of fortune, and has unusual blessings fall to his lot;
successful when he gains what he aims at; prosperous when he succeeds
in those things which men commonly desire. One may be fortunate, in
some cases, where he is not successful; he may be successful, but, if
he has been mistaken in the value of what he has aimed at, he may for
that reason fail to be prosperous.
For"tu*nate*ly, adv. In a fortunate manner; luckily; successfully;
happily.
For"tu*nate*ness, n. The condition or quality of being fortunate; good
luck; success; happiness.
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For"tune (fÙr"tn; 135), n. [F. fortune, L. fortuna; akin to fors,
fortis, chance, prob. fr. ferre to bear, bring. See Bear to support,
and cf. Fortuitous.] 1. The arrival of something in a sudden or
unexpected manner; chance; accident; luck; hap; also, the personified
or deified power regarded as determining human success, apportioning
happiness and unhappiness, and distributing arbitrarily or fortuitously
the lots of life.
'T is more by fortune, lady, than by merit.
Shak.
O Fortune, Fortune, all men call thee fickle.
Shak.
2. That which befalls or is to befall one; lot in life, or event in any
particular undertaking; fate; destiny; as, to tell one's fortune.
You, who men's fortunes in their faces read.
Cowley.
3. That which comes as the result of an undertaking or of a course of
action; good or ill success; especially, favorable issue; happy event;
success; prosperity as reached partly by chance and partly by effort.
Our equal crimes shall equal fortune give.
Dryden.
There is a tide in the affairs of men, Which, taken at the flood,
leads on to fortune.
Shak.
His father dying, he was driven to seek his fortune.
Swift.
4. Wealth; large possessions; large estate; riches; as, a gentleman of
fortune.
Syn. -- Chance; accident; luck; fate.
Fortune book, a book supposed to reveal future events to those who
consult it. Crashaw. -- Fortune hunter, one who seeks to acquire wealth
by marriage. -- Fortune teller, one who professes to tell future events
in the life of another. -- Fortune telling, the practice or art of
professing to reveal future events in the life of another.
For"tune, v. t. [OF. fortuner, L. fortunare. See Fortune, n.] 1. To
make fortunate; to give either good or bad fortune to. [Obs.] Chaucer.