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View synonyms for

incident

[ in-si-duhnt ]

noun

  1. an individual occurrence or event.

    Synonyms:

  2. a distinct piece of action, or an episode, as in a story or play.
  3. something that occurs casually in connection with something else.
  4. something appertaining or attaching to something else.
  5. an occurrence of seemingly minor importance, especially involving nations or factions between which relations are strained and sensitive, that can lead to serious consequences, as an outbreak of hostilities or a war:

    border incident; international incident.

  6. an embarrassing occurrence, especially of a social nature.


adjective

  1. likely or apt to happen (usually followed by to ).
  2. naturally appertaining:

    hardships incident to the life of an explorer.

  3. conjoined or attaching, especially as subordinate to a principal thing.
  4. falling or striking on something, as light rays.

incident

/ ˈɪԲɪəԳ /

noun

  1. a distinct or definite occurrence; event
  2. a minor, subsidiary, or related event or action
  3. a relatively insignificant event that might have serious consequences, esp in international politics
  4. a public disturbance

    the police had reports of an incident outside a pub

  5. the occurrence of something interesting or exciting

    the trip was not without incident

“Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged” 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

adjective

  1. postpositivefoll byto related (to) or dependent (on)
  2. whenpostpositive, often foll by to having a subsidiary or minor relationship (with)
  3. (esp of a beam of light or particles) arriving at or striking a surface

    incident electrons

“Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged” 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
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Other Word Forms

  • c·Գ· adjective
  • ԴDz·c·Գ noun adjective
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Word History and Origins

Origin of incident1

First recorded in 1375–1425; late Middle English, from Middle French, from Medieval Latin incident- (stem of ԳŧԲ “a happening,” noun use of present participle of Latin verb incidere “to fall upon, befall”), equivalent to Latin in- in- 2 + -cid- (combining form of cad- “fall”) + -ent- -ent; cadenza
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Word History and Origins

Origin of incident1

C15: from Medieval Latin incidens an event, from Latin incidere, literally: to fall into, hence befall, happen, from in- ² + cadere to fall
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Synonym Study

See event.
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Example Sentences

Examples have not been reviewed.

The police video, spliced together from officers’ body-worn cameras and surveillance footage, showed confusion in the moments leading up to the incident, which left Lauren, 51, hospitalized with a gunshot wound.

From

The most recent incident happened Wednesday at Angel Stadium and it resulted in a one-game suspension and an undisclosed fine from Major League Baseball on Friday.

From

Paddle UK has also developed an incident reporting system to centrally collect data on incidents and near misses.

From

After it was removed from the scene, the Cybertruck burst into flames again at a nearby tow yard, a person with knowledge of the incident not authorized to discuss it publicly told The Times.

From

Since March there has been a series of assaults, shootings and firebombing incidents in Glasgow and Edinburgh.

From

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incidenceincidental