contingency

American  

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

noun

contingencies plural

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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Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• contingencies
  plural

Etymology

Origin of contingency

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

Explanation

If you plan to walk home if the weather is nice, but bring subway fare just in case, then taking the subway is your contingency plan. A contingency is an event you can't be sure will happen or not. The noun contingency describes something that might or might not happen. We use it to describe an event or situation that is a possible outcome but one that's impossible to predict with certainty. A company might have a contingency plan for what to do if something goes wrong with their primary strategy, also known as "plan B." They might even have plans C, D, and E, to prepare for multiple contingencies.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

contingency contingencies

Stephenson said ministers should work with the EU to secure alternative markets for the refinery's alumina while preparing contingency plans, including examining nationalisation if necessary.

From Barron's ● Jul. 24, 2026

Taco Bell’s leadership team, many of whom were attending an off-site company event in Southern California, convened that night and made contingency plans to start pulling potentially tainted Taylor lettuce from stores.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 23, 2026

The existence of contingency plans is not unusual.

From Salon ● Jul. 11, 2026

Agriculture Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan said authorities have identified 315 districts at risk of below-normal rainfall and prepared contingency plans, including short-duration crops, less water-intensive varieties and stronger water conservation.

From BBC ● Jul. 1, 2026

The immediate contingency overtook him, pulled him back from the edge of the theoretical abyss.

From " The Great Gatsby" by F. Scott Fitzgerald

"Even though people might think it was under control, you should always have precautions in place, you should always have contingencies in place - and both of those things weren't put in place."

From BBC ● Jul. 25, 2026

In addition to planning for all contingencies, take advantage of any extra ways to save and invest, such as catch-up contributions for people 50 and older, Bond said.

From MarketWatch ● May 29, 2026

For the last two years, I have been researching a book about the making of “All the President’s Men,” whose production involved almost as many contingencies and unresolved questions as Watergate itself.

From Los Angeles Times ● May 1, 2026

Various branches of the military draw up plans for all sorts of contingencies in case the president thinks about ordering one.

From Slate ● Apr. 1, 2026

It works out contingencies and relationships and sorts through the mountain of information we get from the outside world, prioritizing it and putting flags on things that demand our immediate attention.

From "Blink" by Malcolm Gladwell

Related Words

• emergency
• eventuality
• exigency
• probability