Definition Definition

accidental - Meaning and Examples

Meaning of 'accidental' (Webster Dictionary)

1 . Accidental [ a.]
- Happening by chance, or unexpectedly; taking place not according to the usual course of things; casual; fortuitous; as, an accidental visit.
- Nonessential; not necessary belonging; incidental; as, are accidental to a play.
2 . Accidental [ n.]
- A property which is not essential; a nonessential; anything happening accidentally.
- Those fortuitous effects produced by luminous rays falling on certain objects so that some parts stand forth in abnormal brightness and other parts are cast into a deep shadow.
- A sharp, flat, or natural, occurring not at the commencement of a piece of music as the signature, but before a particular note.

Meaning of 'accidental' (Princeton's WordNet)

1 . accidental [ s]
Meaning (1):
- happening by chance or unexpectedly or unintentionally
Example in sentence:
  • accidental poisoning;
  • an accidental shooting;
  • with an inadvertent gesture she swept the vase off the table
Meaning (2):
- not of prime or central importance
Example in sentence:
  • nonessential to the integral meanings of poetry;
  • the character's motives remain accidental to the plot

Nearby Words:

accadian accede acceded accedence acceder acceding accelerando accelerate accelerated accelerating

See 'accidental' also in:

Dictionary.com Google Translator Wikipedia.com Merriam Webster

Related Definitions


Categories

Browse Dictionary