propitious

English

WOTD – 11 March 2016

Etymology

From Anglo-Norman and Old French propicius, from Latin propitius (“favorable, well-disposed, kind”). Compare French propice, Portuguese propício and Spanish propicio.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /pɹəˈpɪʃəs/, (in General American also) /pɹoʊˈpɪʃəs/

• Audio (US):

  (file)

• Hyphenation: pro‧pi‧tious

Adjective

propitious (comparative more propitious, superlative most propitious)

1. Favorable; advantageous.

   Synonyms: favorable, advantageous

   Antonym: unpropitious

   propitious weather

2. Characteristic of a good omen.

   Synonyms: auspicious, fortunate, promising

   • 2014 November 6, Rob Nixon, “Naomi Klein’s ‘This Changes Everything’”, in The New York Times Book Review‎^[1], New York, N.Y.: The New York Times Company, →ISSN, →OCLC, archived from the original on 11 October 2025:

     But counterrevolutions are reversible. Klein devotes much of her book to propitious signs that this can happen — indeed is happening.

3. (archaic) Favorably disposed towards someone.

Antonyms

• unpropitious

Derived terms

• impropitious

Related terms

• propitiate
• propitiation
• propitiously
• propitiousness

Translations

favorable

• Armenian: please add this translation if you can
• Bulgarian: благоприятен (bg) (blagoprijaten)
• Catalan: favorable (ca), propici
• Danish: please add this translation if you can
• Dutch: gunstig (nl)
• Finnish: suotuisa (fi)
• French: favorable (fr), propice (fr)
• Georgian: please add this translation if you can
• German: günstig (de), förderlich (de), gnädig (de)
• Greek: ευνοϊκός (el) (evnoïkós)
• Hungarian: kedvező (hu)
• Italian: propizio (it)
• Māori: momoho
• Norwegian:

  Bokmål: gunstig, fordelaktig, favorabel

• Polish: sprzyjający (pl)
• Portuguese: propício (pt)
• Russian: благоприя́тный (ru) (blagoprijátnyj)
• Spanish: propicio (es)
• Swedish: gynnsam (sv)
• Ukrainian: сприятливий (spryjatlyvyj)

advantageous

• Catalan: avantatjós
• Dutch: voordelig (nl)
• Finnish: edullinen (fi), hyödyllinen (fi)
• French: avantageux (fr)
• German: vorteilhaft (de)
• Hungarian: előnyös (hu)
• Swedish: fördelaktig (sv)

characteristic of a good omen: auspicious

• Catalan: propici
• Dutch: onder een goed gesternte
• Finnish: suotuisa (fi), lupaava (fi)
• French: de bonne augure
• German: verheißungsvoll (de)
• Latin: propitius
• Swedish: lyckosam (sv)
• Turkish: uğurlu (tr)

  Ottoman Turkish: اوغورلو (uğurlu), میمون (maymun)

Further reading

• “propitious”, in Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary, Springfield, Mass.: G. & C. Merriam, 1913, →OCLC.
• William Dwight Whitney, Benjamin Eli Smith, editors (1895–1910), “propitious”, in The Century Dictionary […], New York, N.Y.: The Century Co., →OCLC.
• “propitious”, in OneLook Dictionary Search.