1
as in chance
happening by chance
finding the gold was all the more remarkable because its discovery was entirely accidental
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in irrelevant
not being a vital part of or belonging to something
we're considering the painting's merit as a work of art, its commercial value being entirely accidental as far as we're concerned
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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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
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
-
Instead of leaning into the fit’s natural cowboy aesthetic, designers interpreted the fits in a variety of unexpected ways.—
Angela Velasquez,
Sourcing Journal,
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
-
Our motivations—both intrinsic and extrinsic—propel us to acquire new skills, build meaningful relationships and progressively assert our autonomy by taking control of our actions.—
Davide Sartini,
Forbes.com,
1 May 2025
-
The appeal supports the notion that an extrinsic test wouldn’t be the only way to assess the similarity between the songs.—
Larisha Paul,
Rolling Stone,
1 May 2025
Adjective
-
Potentially 40% of autopsies can reveal additional information beyond testing conducted in life, though not all of these will be incidental.—
Lauren B. Solberg,
Sun Sentinel,
6 May 2025
-
Within the emerging framework, a government at war could claim that starving enemy combatants remained legal and that as a result, incidental civilian deaths were tragic but nearly unavoidable outcomes of a legitimate method of modern warfare against totalitarian enemies.—
Boyd van Dijk,
Foreign Affairs,
30 Apr. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Accidental.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/accidental. Accessed 14 May. 2025.
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