: an unfortunate event resulting especially from carelessness or ignorance
was involved in a traffic accident
b
medical: an unexpected and medically important bodily event especially when injurious
a cerebrovascular accident
c
law: an unexpected happening causing loss or injury which is not due to any fault or misconduct on the part of the person injured but for which legal relief may be sought
d
US, informal—used euphemistically to refer to an uncontrolled or involuntary act or instance of urination or defecation (as by a baby or a pet)
The puppy had an accident on the rug.
3
: a nonessential property or quality of an entity or circumstance
He was injured in an accident at work. The accident happened when her car slid on a patch of ice. Investigators are still trying to determine the cause of the accident. Their meeting was an accident.
Recent Examples on the WebWise, a truck driver and stunt driver, burned to death in a car accident at Myrtle Beach Speedway in South Carolina in 1999. Jozsef Papp, ajc, 6 Sep. 2022 This was for Caleb VanHooser and Christian Eubanks, the two Indiana State football players who died in a car accident on Aug. 22 before ever playing a college game. Matthew Vantryon, The Indianapolis Star, 2 Sep. 2022 Jermani Thompson was servicing a Frontier Airlines flight around 10 p.m. when the accident happened, Louis Armstrong New Orleans International Airport said. Phil Helsel, NBC News, 1 Sep. 2022 According to the Alabama State Troopers crash report, the accident happened at 4:56 p.m. on Saturday, June 25. Carol Robinson | Crobinson@al.com, al, 31 Aug. 2022 The accident happened at the intersection of 55th Street and South La Grange Road at around 6:41 p.m. Sunday, said Countryside police Chief Joseph Ford Jr. in an email. Shanzeh Ahmad, Chicago Tribune, 30 Aug. 2022 The accident happened before 2 a.m. in the small town of Riley, about 10 miles from the university's campus. Alexandra Meeks, CNN, 22 Aug. 2022 According to the officials, the accident happened near the town of Jalalpur Peerwala in Punjab province.BostonGlobe.com, 16 Aug. 2022 Police said the accident happened about 7:19 p.m. in the 5700 block of West Fond du Lac Avenue. Steven Martinez, Journal Sentinel, 13 Aug. 2022 See More
Word History
Etymology
Middle English, "happening, nonessential property, diseased condition, disturbance (of the mind)," borrowed from Anglo-French, "irregularity, incident, symptom," borrowed from Latin accident-, accidens "chance event, contingent attribute" (translating Greek symbebēkós), from present participle of accidere "to fall down, impinge on, be heard, happen," from ad-ad- + cadere "to fall" — more at chance entry 1