accidently

adverb

ac·​ci·​dent·​ly ˌak-sə-ˈdent-lē 

ˈak-sə-dənt-,

ˈak-sə-ˌdent-

: accidentally

Law enforcement officials said that an unattended candle accidently lit her living room couch on fire.

—Paul Chi

He was turning out of the gateway when he accidently stumbled against a tall man wrapped in a cloak, who was at that moment coming out of the inn door.

—Charles Dickens

Usage of Accidently

The adverb accidently has been in use since the 18th century. It continues to appear regularly in published writing, but it is far less common than accidentally, and it is sometimes cited as an error.

Examples of accidently in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Officials in one northeast Alabama city canceled their Fourth of July fireworks show Thursday after a technician was injured when a shell accidently detonated. —Natalie Neysa Alund, USA TODAY, 5 July 2024

Milligan starred in the show’s first two seasons from 1974-76 before his character accidently escapes the Land of the Lost, sans kids. —Erik Pedersen, Deadline, 25 June 2024

At the committee hearing, Stokes disagreed with the police report that states the blade is an exact match for the box cutters at the restaurant and accidently fell into the burrito from the plastic encasing. —Drake Bentley, Journal Sentinel, 11 June 2024

Two of the aircraft accidently flew so close to each other that a classified Strategic Air Command report later called the operation unsafe. —Scott D. Sagan, Foreign Affairs, 16 Mar. 2022

Word History

First Known Use

15th century, in the meaning defined above