亏了 (kuī le) is an adverb expressing relief that a bad outcome was avoided, often translated as 'fortunately' or 'thanks to'. It introduces the reason for the fortunate turn, commonly appearing before a verb phrase or clause. Unlike the verb 亏 (meaning 'to lose money' or 'to treat unfairly'), the adverb 亏了 carries a strong sense of 'it's a good thing that...' and is often used in spoken Chinese to highlight a narrow escape from trouble.