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
Luggage gets lost, passports get misplaced and phones may not work at international destinations when they aren't connected to Wi-Fi.
To avoid the headaches and prepare for whatever may come your way (or what accidentally gets left behind), follow these simple tips.
—USA TODAY, 16 Apr. 2024
In March 2022, a 14-year-old student accidentally shot his 15-year-old classmate on a school bus in Kingman.
—L. M. Boyd, The Arizona Republic, 15 Apr. 2024
She may also legitimately be worried that her grandmother might accidentally drop the little one.
—Jeanne Phillips, The Mercury News, 12 Apr. 2024
The virus then accidentally produced incomplete cheaters that had only one of the genes.
—Quanta Magazine, 11 Apr. 2024
This quickly escalates to a violent scuffle as Officer TJ Meadows III accidentally shoots and kills his partner, Officer Kevin Cooper, with his backup gun.
—Katcy Stephan, Variety, 11 Apr. 2024
Last year, one Microsoft AI employee accidentally leaked 38TB of data via a bad URL, leaving Microsoft's AI models vulnerable to exploit or attack.
—Kate Irwin, PCMAG, 10 Apr. 2024
Others, either accidentally or intentionally, put full bags of garbage in recycle bins.
—Cynthia Sewell, Idaho Statesman, 8 Apr. 2024
Keep in Mind The humidity adjustment goes up to 99%, which could lead users to accidentally over-humidify the room, which encourages mold growth.
—Paige Bennett, Better Homes & Gardens, 6 Apr. 2024
USA TODAY, 16 Apr. 2024
In March 2022, a 14-year-old student accidentally shot his 15-year-old classmate on a school bus in Kingman.
—L. M. Boyd, The Arizona Republic, 15 Apr. 2024
She may also legitimately be worried that her grandmother might accidentally drop the little one.
—Jeanne Phillips, The Mercury News, 12 Apr. 2024
The virus then accidentally produced incomplete cheaters that had only one of the genes.
—Quanta Magazine, 11 Apr. 2024
This quickly escalates to a violent scuffle as Officer TJ Meadows III accidentally shoots and kills his partner, Officer Kevin Cooper, with his backup gun.
—Katcy Stephan, Variety, 11 Apr. 2024
Last year, one Microsoft AI employee accidentally leaked 38TB of data via a bad URL, leaving Microsoft's AI models vulnerable to exploit or attack.
—Kate Irwin, PCMAG, 10 Apr. 2024
Others, either accidentally or intentionally, put full bags of garbage in recycle bins.
—Cynthia Sewell, Idaho Statesman, 8 Apr. 2024
Keep in Mind The humidity adjustment goes up to 99%, which could lead users to accidentally over-humidify the room, which encourages mold growth.
—Paige Bennett, Better Homes & Gardens, 6 Apr. 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 19 Apr. 2024.
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