Accidental
Happening by chance or without deliberate planning; not intended. In music, it is also a noun for a symbol that temporarily alters a pitch.
adjectiveAccidental
Happening by chance or without deliberate planning; not intended. In music, it is also a noun for a symbol that temporarily alters a pitch.
adjectiveImagine This
Imagine you plan a routine coffee run, but you meet a former classmate by pure chance, and that chance encounter leads to a new collaboration.
Sounds Like
ak-si-DEN-tl
Looks Like
Looks like 'accident' + 'al'; the suffix -al signals an adjective form.
Remember This
Accidental describes events that occur by chance or unintentionally. In music, an accidental is a symbol (sharp, flat, or natural) that temporarily changes a pitch.
Other Forms
Connect With
chance, coincidence, fortuitous, incidental
Note
Do not confuse with 'accident' (a mishap). In everyday use, accidental means unplanned; in music, it refers to a symbol that alters a note's pitch. The adverb form is 'accidentally,' and the plural noun form in music is 'accidentals.'