accident
UK[ˈæksɪdənt]US[ˈæksɪdənt]
n
An unfortunate event that happens unexpectedly and unintentionally, typically resulting in damage or injury.
n
Something that happens by chance, without being planned.
Morpheme Breakdown
ac
cid
ent
ac
to, towards
cid
fall
ent
noun suffix
Etymology
The word 'accident' descends from the Latin 'accidere', meaning "to fall upon, befall, happen". This verb itself is a compound of 'ad-' (to) and 'cadere' (to fall). The core image is of an event "falling upon" someone, implying an unforeseen occurrence. In medieval scholastic philosophy, 'accidens' was used to denote a non-essential property that "befalls" a substance. Over time, the meaning narrowed in common usage to emphasize the negative and unforeseen aspects of such happenings, leading to its modern primary sense of an unfortunate mishap, while retaining the secondary sense of a chance occurrence.
Analysis
Structure: ac (to, towards) + cid (fall) + ent (noun suffix)
- ac: A Latin prefix (ad-), meaning "to, towards". It assimilates to 'ac-' before 'c'.
- cid: From the Latin root 'cadere' (to fall, to happen by chance).
- ent: A Latin noun-forming suffix (-ens, -entis), indicating an agent or a state of being.
Examples
She was late due to a traffic accident on the highway.
The discovery of penicillin was a happy accident.
We met by pure accident at the airport.