Synonym Chooser

How does the adjective accidental differ from other similar words?

Some common synonyms of accidental are casual, contingent, and fortuitous. While all these words mean "not amenable to planning or prediction," accidental stresses chance.

any resemblance to actual persons is entirely accidental

When might casual be a better fit than accidental?

In some situations, the words casual and accidental are roughly equivalent. However, casual stresses lack of real or apparent premeditation or intent.

a casual encounter with a stranger

When is it sensible to use contingent instead of accidental?

While in some cases nearly identical to accidental, contingent suggests possibility of happening but stresses uncertainty and dependence on other future events for existence or occurrence.

the contingent effects of the proposed law

When can fortuitous be used instead of accidental?

While the synonyms fortuitous and accidental are close in meaning, fortuitous so strongly suggests chance that it often connotes entire absence of cause.

a series of fortuitous events

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of accidental That's when the bullet was found lodged in Gary's rib, and what had started as a possible accidental death — became a murder investigation. Susan Mallie, CBS News, 26 Apr. 2025 William made the move to Mishcon de Reya, which represented Princess Diana in her divorce from Charles a year before her accidental death. Lea Veloso, StyleCaster, 25 Apr. 2025 The fall appears accidental; however, an investigation into the incident is ongoing, per the SPD. Man, 40, Falls 200 Feet to His Death While Canyoneering at Zion National Park in Utah Several of her friends shared their condolences with her family, including Tim and Brooke Paoli. Charna Flam, People.com, 25 Apr. 2025 What followed was part social experiment, part accidental soul-baring, and slightly more fun than doomscrolling solo. Jennifer Jolly, USA Today, 18 Apr. 2025 See All Example Sentences for accidental
Recent Examples of Synonyms for accidental
Adjective
  • This is pretty much your standard-issue focus-group scene, with dopey viewers idiotically nitpicking irrelevant details.
    Jessica M. Goldstein, Vulture, 2 May 2025
  • By 1917 in Russia, housewives were marching in city streets to protest a lack of food, peasants were seizing land, and many Russians saw the czarist government as irrelevant, even treasonous.
    Margaret MacMillan, The Atlantic, 30 Apr. 2025
Adjective
  • What to look for: The brick and stone walls are nearly three feet thick in places and are designed to withstand any inadvertent ammunition explosions.
    Arkansas Online, Arkansas Online, 2 May 2025
  • The scenario has played out in American communities for years -- sometimes resulting from bad intelligence, others from inadvertent officer errors -- often leaving property damaged and families traumatized.
    Devin Dwyer, ABC News, 29 Apr. 2025
Adjective
  • The idea came from observing hydrocarbon reservoirs in northern Italy’s Po Valley over two decades — essentially storage wells where gas coming from external pipelines is pumped and stored in summer to create reserves for Italy in winter.
    Julia Buckley, CNN Money, 4 May 2025
  • Breslow said the team will be open to exploring external options on the trade and free-agent market going forward, but there is nothing imminent on that front.
    Jen McCaffrey, New York Times, 3 May 2025
Adjective
  • What’s perhaps unexpected, and has also contributed to Knies’ rise as a bona fide playoff performer?
    Joshua Kloke, New York Times, 3 May 2025
  • Say yes to group chats, catch-ups, or even unexpected collaboration.
    Colin Bedell, Them., 2 May 2025
Adjective
  • Lauren Heller Since Sagittarians are willing to try anything once, the Fire sign resembles Lauren's adventitious persona.
    Lisa Stardust, People.com, 31 Mar. 2025
  • The patchy and adventitious quality of Jameson’s reconstruction must make clear his difference as a thinker.
    Mark Greif, Harper's Magazine, 26 July 2024
Adjective
  • From awkward silences and Wi-Fi lags to unintentional mute mishaps, there are countless ways virtual conversations can detract from your personal brand.
    William Arruda, Forbes.com, 1 May 2025
  • One organization is notorious for an unintentional form of this prejudice: animal shelters.
    Chicago Tribune, Chicago Tribune, 19 Apr. 2025
Adjective
  • This refers to a call spread where the in-the-money call has the same extrinsic value as the out-of-the-money call.
    Michael Khouw, CNBC, 27 Mar. 2025
  • And that is not something extrinsic, imposed by regulation or taxation, but inherent to the way the company conceives of itself, its ownership structure, its governance, its performance metrics, its finances — everything.
    IESE Business School, Forbes, 25 Feb. 2025
Adjective
  • As a result, the county worked with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to get an incidental take permit.
    Bill Kearney, Sun Sentinel, 24 Apr. 2025
  • Overfishing — whether targeted or incidental — is their biggest threat, with many caught unintentionally and discarded as bycatch.
    Melissa Cristina Márquez, Forbes.com, 7 Apr. 2025

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Cite this Entry

“Accidental.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/accidental. Accessed 11 May. 2025.

More from Merriam-Webster on accidental

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