accidental

[ak-si-den-tl] /ˌæk sɪˈdɛn tl/
adjective
1.
happening by chance or accident; not planned; unexpected:
an accidental meeting.
2.
nonessential; incidental; subsidiary:
accidental benefits.
3.
Music. relating to or indicating sharps, flats, or naturals.
noun
4.
a nonessential or subsidiary circumstance, characteristic, or feature.
5.
Music. a sign placed before a note indicating a chromatic alteration of its pitch.
Origin
1350-1400; Middle English < Medieval Latin accidentālis. See accident, -al1
Related forms
accidentally, accidently, adverb
accidentalness, accidentality, noun
nonaccidental, adjective, noun
nonaccidentally, adverb
nonaccidentalness, noun
preaccidental, adjective
preaccidentally, adverb
pseudoaccidental, adjective
pseudoaccidentally, adverb
quasi-accidental, adjective
quasi-accidentally, adverb
unaccidental, adjective
unaccidentally, adverb
Synonyms
1. unintentional, unforeseen. Accidental, casual, fortuitous all describe something outside the usual course of events. Accidental implies occurring unexpectedly or by chance: an accidental blow. Casual describes a passing event of slight importance: a casual reference. Fortuitous is applied to events occurring without known cause, often of a fortunate or favorable nature: a fortuitous shower of meteors. It often also implies good luck or good fortune: a fortuitous choice leading to rapid advancement.
Antonyms
1. planned, contrived.
Examples from the web for accidental
  • The cause of this population decline is unknown, but it's likely a combination of accidental and intentional overfishing.
  • Any lenience toward a particular diving outfit was accidental on my part.
  • Three of the other incidents involved accidental cuts.
  • But you have to stay on the program, even when the grade-grubbers and accidental plagiarists start to line up outside your office.
  • What you get to know about people you don't know simply by accidental adjacency is astonishing.
  • Both crosses, accidental and contrived, remained in place.
  • So some reach for a consoling but primitive explanation: it is all a misunderstanding, a kind of accidental dysfunction.
  • Introductions of new species, both accidental and deliberate, over the past few centuries show the problem.
  • As this globe-girdling traffic increases, so will the number of accidental introductions.
  • Firms may also copy some of the unusual business models that makers, often accidental entrepreneurs, have come up with.
British Dictionary definitions for accidental

accidental

/ˌæksɪˈdɛntəl/
adjective
1.
occurring by chance, unexpectedly, or unintentionally
2.
nonessential; incidental
3.
(music) denoting sharps, flats, or naturals that are not in the key signature of a piece
4.
(logic) (of a property) not essential; contingent
noun
5.
an incidental, nonessential, or supplementary circumstance, factor, or attribute
6.
(music) a symbol denoting a sharp, flat, or natural that is not a part of the key signature
Derived Forms
accidentally, adverb
Word Origin and History for accidental
adj.

late 14c., "non-essential," from Old French accidentel or directly from Medieval Latin accidentalis, from Latin accidentem (see accident). Meaning "outside the normal course of nature" is from early 15c.; that of "coming by chance" is from 1570s.

n.

late 14c., "non-essential quality," from accidental (adj.). The musical sense is from 1868.

Encyclopedia Article for accidental

in music, sign placed immediately to the left of (or above) a note to show that the note must be changed in pitch. A sharp () raises a note by a semitone; a flat () lowers it by a semitone; a natural () restores it to the original pitch. Double sharps () and double flats () indicate that the note is raised or lowered by two semitones. Sharps or flats that are placed at the beginning of a musical staff, called a key signature, indicate the tonality, or key, of the music and are not considered accidentals.

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