Synonyms of unintentional

unintentional

adjective

ˌən-in-ˈten(t)-sh(ə-)nəl

1

as in accidental

happening by chance

an unintentional encounter with an old classmate at the mall

Synonyms & Similar Words

• accidental
• inadvertent
• unexpected
• chance
• unintended
• incidental
• unplanned
• fortuitous
• casual
• unwitting
• odd
• unpremeditated
• random
• arbitrary
• coincidental
• fluky
• haphazard
• unforeseen
• unforeseeable
• aimless
• uncertain
• unconscious
• involuntary
• freak
• desultory
• forced
• unprompted
• coerced

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• intentional
• deliberate
• intended
• premeditated
• planned
• calculated
• inevitable
• certain
• predictable
• sure
• foreseeable
• fixed
• destined
• foreseen
• set
• expected
• premeditative
• prescribed
• predetermined
• conscious
• prepense
• voluntary
• willful
• knowing
• unforced
• volunteer
• preordained
• predestined
• foreordained
• freewill

2

as in spontaneous

not made or done willingly or by choice

an unintentional insult that nevertheless was very hurtful

Synonyms & Similar Words

• accidental
• spontaneous
• unwilling
• unintended
• involuntary
• forced
• coerced
• automatic
• inadvertent
• impulsive
• will-less
• unplanned
• instinctive
• unpremeditated
• unconscious
• unwitting
• unprompted
• unknowing

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• intentional
• deliberate
• voluntary
• willful
• willing
• conscious
• unforced
• purposeful
• uncoerced
• premeditated
• knowing
• planned
• considered
• advised
• volitional
• freewill
• premeditative
• prepense
• self-inflicted
• self-imposed

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of unintentional

As of 2026, federal data shows that choking claims the lives of more than 4,100 Americans who are 65 or older per year and is the third leading cause of unintentional injury death in that age group. — Tamia Fowlkes, jsonline.com, 20 Aug. 2026

Mitchell’s own imitation of Spielbergian life, despite its meticulous re-creation (and gleeful destruction) of eighties suburbia, stumbles into an uncanny valley between sincerity and cynicism, between unintentional comedy and deliberate homage. — Justin Chang, New Yorker, 17 Aug. 2026

Cook argues this creates an unintentional selfishness, in which your anxious thoughts distract you from noticing what’s actually going on with the people around you. — Hannah Harper, HEALTH, 14 Aug. 2026

The Dark Knight Rises (2012) Christopher Nolan’s Catwoman was never going to evoke the (intentional) camp of Michelle Pfeiffer or the (unintentional) camp of Halle Berry. — Chris Bellamy, Entertainment Weekly, 14 Aug. 2026