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- pronunciation:
- aek
sih
den
t
 l
- parts of speech:
- adjective, noun
- features:
- Word Combinations (adjective), Word Builder, Word Explorer, Word Parts
| part of speech: |
adjective |
| definition 1: |
happening by chance; unexpected; unintended.
The discovery of a cure for the disease was purely accidental.We take precautions to avoid accidental injury.- synonyms:
- casual, chance, contingent, inadvertent, unintended, unintentional, unthinking, unwitting
- antonyms:
- deliberate, intended, intentional, planned, willful
- similar words:
- coincidental, fluky, fortuitous, incidental, random, stray, unexpected
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| definition 2: |
not part of the basic nature of a thing; secondary; incidental.
Is a sense of humor an accidental feature of human nature or an essential one?- synonyms:
- accessory, adventitious, extrinsic, incidental, nonessential, secondary
- antonyms:
- essential
- similar words:
- circumstantial, collateral, extra, extraneous, inessential, subordinate, subsidiary, superfluous, unessential, unnecessary
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| related words: |
careless, nonessential, offhand |
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| part of speech: |
noun |
| definition 1: |
a nonessential, unexpected, or supplementary factor, attribute, thing, or circumstance.
Positive effects of a treatment are sometimes caused by accidentals rather than the treatment itself.- synonyms:
- nonessential
- similar words:
- external, incidental, supplement
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| definition 2: |
in music, a symbol that indicates that a note should be played or sung one or two semitones higher or lower than is otherwise indicated. In most cases, the pitch is to be raised or lowered by one half step, as from F natural to F sharp.
This measure has four accidentals: two flats and two naturals. |
| definition 3: |
in music, a note that is raised or lowered by one or two semitones due to the presence of an accidental.
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| contrasting words: |
essential |
| derivation: |
accidentally (adv.) |
Word Builder: accidental +
- accidentally:
by accident.
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