Synonym Chooser

How is the word providential different from other adjectives like it?

Some common synonyms of providential are fortunate, happy, and lucky. While all these words mean "meeting with unforeseen success," providential more definitely implies the help or intervention of a higher power.

a providential change in the weather

When is fortunate a more appropriate choice than providential?

While the synonyms fortunate and providential are close in meaning, fortunate suggests being rewarded beyond one's deserts.

fortunate in my investments

How is happy related to other words for providential?

Happy combines the implications of lucky and fortunate with stress on being blessed.

a series of happy accidents

In what contexts can lucky take the place of providential?

The meanings of lucky and providential largely overlap; however, lucky stresses the agency of chance in bringing about a favorable result.

won because of a lucky bounce

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of providential Helping to weave all those strands into a single, elegant narrative is an Emory University astrochemist with a providential name: Susanna Widicus Weaver. Andrew Grant, Discover Magazine, 31 Jan. 2011 Russia’s longstanding pursuit of a global position beyond its means—its aspiration to be a providential power, with a special mission in the world—has led it, again and again, to autocratic rule. WSJ, 4 Nov. 2022 Many a past biographer has observed that Lincoln understood himself as an actor in a providential drama. John Fabian Witt, Washington Post, 24 Oct. 2022 Meacham bids to be the redeemer in chief of the narrative of American exceptionalism: the venerable if now-shopworn story in which the United States has a providential and world-historic role as a nation distinctively dedicated to human liberty. John Fabian Witt, Washington Post, 24 Oct. 2022 See All Example Sentences for providential
Recent Examples of Synonyms for providential
Adjective
  • Mizuhara was hardly so fortunate during this period.
    DAVID AMSDEN, Rolling Stone, 29 Aug. 2025
  • Anyone fortunate enough to play 16 years in Major League Baseball is pretty likely to eventually be cut loose.
    Jackson Roberts, MSNBC Newsweek, 28 Aug. 2025
Adjective
  • Opened just last year, Norm’s already feels like a neighbourhood institution worn in by years of happy regulars.
    Bon Appétit Staff & Contributors, Bon Appetit Magazine, 20 Aug. 2025
  • Rainbows represent happy things – Noah’s Ark, Wizard of Oz, Unicorns, etc.
    Ticked Off, The Orlando Sentinel, 20 Aug. 2025
Adjective
  • Some may be lucky to have breathtaking views from their homes, offices or private spaces.
    Dana Afana, Freep.com, 28 Aug. 2025
  • Those of us lucky enough to have seen him at his peak remember how exhilarating — and what a monumental sensory overload — those shows were.
    Jem Aswad, Variety, 28 Aug. 2025
Adjective
  • In financial terms, the Presidency came to Trump at a fortuitous moment.
    David D. Kirkpatrick, New Yorker, 11 Aug. 2025
  • Rather than counting on a fortuitous LTIR situation, however, the Leafs can create their own luck by entering the season with some extra space, space that will expand over time and give them real options.
    James Mirtle, New York Times, 10 July 2025
Adjective
  • This alignment with prosocial AI isn't coincidental — both frameworks recognize that unchecked pursuit of efficiency or profit can lead to societal harm.
    Cornelia C. Walther, Forbes.com, 21 Aug. 2025
  • All coincidental, considering scripts are written long before the final product debuts.
    Bob Strauss, Los Angeles Times, 17 June 2025

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Cite this Entry

“Providential.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/providential. Accessed 4 Sep. 2025.

More from Merriam-Webster on providential

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
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