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

accessory symptom, accessory vertebral vein, accessway, acciaccatura, accidence, accident, accident boat, accident insurance, accident proneness, accident tout, accident-prone

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.

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ANTONYMS FOR accident

4 design, intent.

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Related forms

post·ac·ci·dent, adjective

Can be confused

accident 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