accidentally
adverb
ac·ci·dent·al·ly
ˌak-sə-ˈdent-lē 
-ˈden-tᵊl-ē
-ˈden-tᵊl-ē
: in an accidental or unintended manner : by accident
I accidentally deleted the file.
The lock prevents the gate from opening accidentally.
Six lionfish were accidentally released from a home aquarium in Biscayne Bay, Fla., during Hurricane Andrew in 1992.—
Alcestis Cooky Oberg
Alcestis Cooky ObergThe Olympic test was thrown out after the test lab accidentally destroyed the backup sample … that's required to confirm a positive result.—Christie Aschwanden
Christie AschwandenHe bumped into her accidentally on purpose. [=he bumped into her intentionally but he tried to make it appear to be an accident]
Examples of accidentally in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
The usher then accidentally stepped on the singer’s gown.
—Tatiana Tenreyro, The Hollywood Reporter, 22 May 2024
As a child, the woman was accidentally stepped on by a classmate while wearing sandals; that triggered a fear that lingered, gradually worsening throughout her life.
—Angela Haupt, TIME, 22 May 2024
Bodycam footage captured the moment a Florida deputy smashed a car window to rescue a 1-year-old who was accidentally locked inside a car without its engine running.
—Pilar Arias, Fox News, 22 May 2024
And not to be discounted, Eberlein accidentally broke a pocket mirror three days before their trip.
—Bram Sable-Smith, NPR, 21 May 2024
In fact, the deal accidentally became a major contributing factor toward a third-quarter loss of $11 million and is now priced at $25.
—Gabe Hauari, The Indianapolis Star, 20 May 2024
Earlier this month, an authorized parts dealer for Sonos accidentally leaked images of the over-the-ear headphones with a premium price tag of $450, putting the product in direct competition with the Apple AirPods Max.
—Michael Kan, PCMAG, 20 May 2024
Google accidentally deleted a $125 billion pension fund’s account.
—Morgan Haefner, Quartz, 13 May 2024
Some social media users wrote that the crash occurred when the driver intended to put his car in reverse, but accidentally left it in drive mode.
—Ilana Arougheti, Kansas City Star, 9 May 2024
Tatiana Tenreyro, The Hollywood Reporter, 22 May 2024
As a child, the woman was accidentally stepped on by a classmate while wearing sandals; that triggered a fear that lingered, gradually worsening throughout her life.
—Angela Haupt, TIME, 22 May 2024
Bodycam footage captured the moment a Florida deputy smashed a car window to rescue a 1-year-old who was accidentally locked inside a car without its engine running.
—Pilar Arias, Fox News, 22 May 2024
And not to be discounted, Eberlein accidentally broke a pocket mirror three days before their trip.
—Bram Sable-Smith, NPR, 21 May 2024
In fact, the deal accidentally became a major contributing factor toward a third-quarter loss of $11 million and is now priced at $25.
—Gabe Hauari, The Indianapolis Star, 20 May 2024
Earlier this month, an authorized parts dealer for Sonos accidentally leaked images of the over-the-ear headphones with a premium price tag of $450, putting the product in direct competition with the Apple AirPods Max.
—Michael Kan, PCMAG, 20 May 2024
Google accidentally deleted a $125 billion pension fund’s account.
—Morgan Haefner, Quartz, 13 May 2024
Some social media users wrote that the crash occurred when the driver intended to put his car in reverse, but accidentally left it in drive mode.
—Ilana Arougheti, Kansas City Star, 9 May 2024
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'accidentally.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
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Cite this Entry
“Accidentally.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/accidentally. Accessed 28 May. 2024.
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