accidentally
adverb
ac·ci·dent·al·ly
ˌak-sə-ˈdent-lē 
-ˈden-tᵊl-ē
-ˈden-tᵊl-ē
: in an accidental or unintended manner : by accident
I accidentally deleted the file.
The lock prevents the gate from opening accidentally.
Six lionfish were accidentally released from a home aquarium in Biscayne Bay, Fla., during Hurricane Andrew in 1992.—
Alcestis Cooky Oberg
Alcestis Cooky ObergThe Olympic test was thrown out after the test lab accidentally destroyed the backup sample … that's required to confirm a positive result.—Christie Aschwanden
Christie AschwandenHe bumped into her accidentally on purpose. [=he bumped into her intentionally but he tried to make it appear to be an accident]
Examples of accidentally in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
Why did fintech Paxos accidentally mint, then destroy, PayPal’s PYUSD?
—Andrew Nusca, Fortune, 16 Oct. 2025
Wyeth had accidentally taken a photo of several people on an oblique with their heads bowed as if in prayer.
—Literary Hub, 14 Oct. 2025
The boat therefore needed metal or plastic cages installed around the engines, so that the diver wouldn’t get accidentally cut up by their blades — and finding a boat and then the right cages fit onto the boat would take time.
—Samanth Subramanian, The Dial, 14 Oct. 2025
Les is a biotech whizz seeking funding for his revolutionary tech – the same tech that accidentally reduces the size of his spouse.
—Stewart Clarke, Deadline, 14 Oct. 2025
See All Example Sentences for accidentally
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Andrew Nusca, Fortune, 16 Oct. 2025
Wyeth had accidentally taken a photo of several people on an oblique with their heads bowed as if in prayer.
—Literary Hub, 14 Oct. 2025
The boat therefore needed metal or plastic cages installed around the engines, so that the diver wouldn’t get accidentally cut up by their blades — and finding a boat and then the right cages fit onto the boat would take time.
—Samanth Subramanian, The Dial, 14 Oct. 2025
Les is a biotech whizz seeking funding for his revolutionary tech – the same tech that accidentally reduces the size of his spouse.
—Stewart Clarke, Deadline, 14 Oct. 2025
See All Example Sentences for accidentally
Cite this Entry
“Accidentally.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/accidentally. Accessed 18 Oct. 2025.
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