View synonyms for

contingency

[ kuhn-tin-juhn-see ]

Phonetic (Standard)IPA

noun

plural contingencies.

dependence on chance or on the fulfillment of a condition; uncertainty; fortuitousness:
Nothing was left to contingency.
a contingent event; a chance, accident, or possibility conditional on something uncertain:
He was prepared for every contingency.
Synonyms: , ,
something incidental to a thing.

contingency

/ ��ə��ˈ��ɪ�Ի��ə�Բ�ɪ /

noun

1. a possible but not very likely future event or condition; eventuality
2. ( as modifier )
  a contingency plan
something dependent on a possible future event
a fact, event, etc, incidental to or dependent on something else
in systemic grammar
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
logic
1. the state of being contingent
2. a contingent statement
dependence on chance; uncertainty
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 )
  the contingency coefficient
  a contingency table

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Word History and Origins

Origin of contingency¹

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

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Example Sentences

Examples have not been reviewed.

The publicly-owned company said it had contingency plans in place to maintain services.

From

Like the biological process of life, they evolve according to need, opportunity and contingency.

From

The council previously said Unite was stopping them from operating a contingency service, which would allow them to make one bin collection to every household a week.

From

Hoteliers have been making contingency plans, consulting with lawyers, planning webinars and educating their managers on what to do in case immigration authorities knock on their doors.

From

Given the city’s geographic proximity to a major fault line, his team had recommended that the government update its building codes to make structures more resilient and improve seismic contingency planning.

From

Related Words

contingence contingency fee

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