contingency

American  

[kuhn-tin-juhn-see] / kənˈtɪn dʒən si /

noun

plural

contingencies

1. dependence on chance or on the fulfillment of a condition; uncertainty; fortuitousness.

   Nothing was left to contingency.

2. a contingent event; a chance, accident, or possibility conditional on something uncertain.

   He was prepared for every contingency.

   Synonyms:

   predicament, likelihood, emergency

3. something incidental to a thing.

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contingency British  

/ kənˈtɪndʒənsɪ /

noun

1. 1. a possible but not very likely future event or condition; eventuality

   2. ( as modifier )

      a contingency plan

2. something dependent on a possible future event

3. a fact, event, etc, incidental to or dependent on something else

4. 1. modification of the meaning of a main clause by use of a bound clause introduced by a binder such as if, when, though, or since Compare adding

   2. ( as modifier )

      a contingency clause

5. logic

   1. the state of being contingent

   2. a contingent statement

6. dependence on chance; uncertainty

7. statistics

   1. the degree of association between theoretical and observed common frequencies of two graded or classified variables. It is measured by the chi-square test

   2. ( as modifier )

      a contingency table

      the contingency coefficient

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Etymology

Origin of contingency

First recorded in 1555–65; conting(ent) + -ency

Example Sentences

But its years of contingency planning have helped mitigate the impact, putting it in a better situation than some of its neighbors.

From Barron's • Mar. 26, 2026

In the near-term, executives at car parts companies told the Financial Times that car makers were trying to build up contingency inventories amid continued fighting in the Middle East.

From Barron's • Mar. 26, 2026

Chancellor Rachel Reeves said contingency planning was under way for "every eventuality", noting the full impact of the war on the UK economy was uncertain.

From BBC • Mar. 24, 2026

The U.S. has trained and planned for this contingency for decades.

From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 22, 2026

It lacked the lyrical eloquence and the floating optimism of the Jeffersonian version because it was grounded in the palpable sense of contingency Adams had internalized over his long career.

From "Founding Brothers: The Revolutionary Generation" by Joseph J. Ellis

Related Words

• emergency
• eventuality
• exigency
• probability