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accident

[ ak-si-duhnt ]

/ ˈæk sɪ dənt /

||

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WATCH NOW: Are Accidents Always Bad?

WATCH NOW: Are Accidents Always Bad?

As a teenager, I had this one friend who used to call his kid brother “The Accident” every time he got annoyed with him. Does that mean all accidents aren't bad?

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noun

an undesirable or unfortunate happening that occurs unintentionally and usually results in harm, injury, damage, or loss; casualty; mishap: automobile accidents.

Law. such a happening resulting in injury that is in no way the fault of the injured person for which compensation or indemnity is legally sought.

any event that happens unexpectedly, without a deliberate plan or cause.

chance; fortune; luck: I was there by accident.

a fortuitous circumstance, quality, or characteristic: an accident of birth.

Philosophy. any entity or event contingent upon the existence of something else.

Geology. a surface irregularity, usually on a small scale, the reason for which is not apparent.

Nearby words

Origin of accident

1350–1400; Middle English < Latin accident- (stem of accidēns happening, present participle of accidere to befall), equivalent to ac- ac- + -cid-, combining form of cad- fall + -ent- -ent

SYNONYMS FOR accident

1 mischance, misfortune, misadventure; contingency; disaster.

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR accident ON THESAURUS.COM

ANTONYMS FOR accident

4 design, intent.

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Related formspost·ac·ci·dent, adjective

Can be confusedaccident Occident

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for accident

Father Joel Román Salazar died in a car crash in 2013; his death was ruled an accident, but the suspicion of foul play persists.
Mexico’s Priests Are Marked for Murder|Jason McGahan|January 7, 2015|DAILY BEAST
Lalo insisted during a recent interview that they encountered Chito “and his people by accident.”
An Informant, a Missing American, and Juarez’s House of Death: Inside the 12-Year Cold Case of David Castro|Bill Conroy|January 6, 2015|DAILY BEAST
The accident rate in Asia has marred what was in 2014 a banner year for aviation safety.
Annoying Airport Delays Might Prevent You From Becoming the Next AirAsia 8501|Clive Irving|January 6, 2015|DAILY BEAST
If there are 162 confirmed deaths from Flight 8501, this would make 2014 the worst year for accident deaths since 2005.
Did Bad Weather Bring Down AirAsia 8501?|Clive Irving|December 29, 2014|DAILY BEAST

What conflicts do exist between them derive from misunderstanding and accident.
The 2014 Novel of the Year|Nathaniel Rich|December 29, 2014|DAILY BEAST
How Phyl had met Silas, how he had persuaded her to get into the phaton with him, the accident and all the rest.
The Ghost Girl|H. De Vere Stacpoole
Time and accident had changed him; moreover, he could bring art to the assistance of nature.
Lysbeth|H. Rider Haggard
Everything passed off without an accident; the work was a success.
Scientific American Supplement, Vol. XXI., No. 531, March 6, 1886|Various
But for the accident to the motor they would not have dreamed of making a landing short of the aviation field at Bar-le-Duc.
Air Service Boys Over The Enemy's Lines|Charles Amory Beach
He should be away over the month I had stipulated for; and, in case of accident, I would have the protection of his name.
The New Penelope and Other Stories and Poems|Frances Fuller Victor

British Dictionary definitions for accident

accident

/ (ˈæksɪdənt) /

noun

an unforeseen event or one without an apparent cause

anything that occurs unintentionally or by chance; chance; fortuneI met him by accident

a misfortune or mishap, esp one causing injury or death

Also called: adjunct logic philosophy a nonessential attribute or characteristic of something (as opposed to substance)

metaphysics a property as contrasted with the substance in which it inheres

geology a surface irregularity in a natural formation, esp in a rock formation or a river system

Word Origin for accident

C14: via Old French from Latin accident- chance, happening, from the present participle of accidere to befall, happen, from ad- to + cadere to fall

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Word Origin and History for accident

accident

n.

late 14c., "an occurrence, incident, event," from Old French accident (12c.), from Latin accidentem (nominative accidens), present participle of accidere "happen, fall out, fall upon," from ad- "to" (see ad-) + cadere "fall" (see case (n.1)). Meaning grew from "something that happens, an event," to "something that happens by chance," then "mishap." Philosophical sense "non-essential characteristic of a thing" is late 14c. Meaning "unplanned child" is attested by 1932.

Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper