accidentally
Americanadverb
-
by chance or mistake; in a way that is not planned or intended.
If you break your key, whether accidentally or on purpose, there is a $40 charge to replace it.
-
in a nonessential or subsidiary way; incidentally.
Philosophy is essentially a vocation, and only accidentally a profession.
Usage
Spelling tips for accidentally The word accidentally is hard to spell because it can be hard to remember which letters are doubled and which are not. To add to the confusion, there are two possible spellings of accidentally. While less common, accidently is also an acceptable spelling of the word. How to spell accidentally: It's no accident that many animals have two eyes to see (C) And two ears to Listen (L). This reminds you that the letters c and l are doubled in accidentally, with an a in between.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Etymology
Origin of accidentally
Explanation
If something happens accidentally, it didn't happen on purpose — blame it on a mistake, chance, or outside forces. There are things you mean to do, like brushing your hair or buttoning your shirt. Then there are things you do accidentally: you didn't mean for them to happen, but they happened anyway. Just about all spilled milk happens accidentally. If a surgeon leaves a scalpel in a patient, let's hope he did it accidentally. And if a football bounces off a defender into the running back's arms and he scores a touchdown, he made a great play — accidentally.
Vocabulary lists containing accidentally
Selection Vocabulary 2, Unit 2
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Spelling Practice 2, Unit 1
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
His misguided approach - often aped on the Accidentally Partridge social media account, which shares cringeworthy clips of public figures - is "provocative" but, Coogan hopes, "never mean-spirited."
From BBC • Sep. 30, 2025
Accidentally sealed in an box filled with steel-toed work boots, a Utah cat traveled to a warehouse in Riverside.
From Los Angeles Times • Jul. 15, 2024
Accidentally created by Butter & Scotch bakery in Brooklyn, this cake takes the nostalgia of boxed birthday cakes from childhood and updates it with a denser texture and subtle cream cheese frosting.
From Salon • Feb. 5, 2023
Accidentally casting a ballot when you’re not allowed to is “the very antithesis” of such illegality, Hirsch noted.
From Slate • Oct. 25, 2022
Accidentally, he had fallen asleep; and his monkey, being of an inquisitive turn, had got loose, and was exploring on his own account.
From Happy Days for Boys and Girls by Various
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
