26984 words

accident

4 definitions • 9 examples
1
something bad that happens that is not expected or intended and that often damages something or injures someone:

Examples:

have an accident Josh had an accident and spilled water all over his work.
involved in an accident The lorry had been involved in an accident.
The sign was damaged in an accident.
She was injured in a car/road accident (= when one car hit another).
2
something that happens by chance, without anyone intending or planning it:

Examples:

accident of birth Social status is often merely an accident of birth (= caused by whether people are born rich, poor, etc.).
I like to think it is not an accident that hidden in the word "created" are the letters R-E-A-D.
He became president by an accident of history.
3
an event not intended by anyone but which has the result of injuring someone or damaging something:

Examples:

He was killed in an automobile accident at the age of 21.
4
something that happens unexpectedly and unintentionally:

Examples:

It’s no accident that (= There are reasons that explain why) she was chosen to be a member of the most powerful committee in Congress.

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