incidentally
122
4.8
- adverb
- /ˌɪn.sɪˈdɛn.t̬əl.i/
- And incidentally, if you should ever need a ride, just stick out your thumb.
- incidentally, one
- incidentally, one can also
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Watch on YouTubeThat much, that much, incidentally, is not a conjecture.
- That much, that much, incidentally, is not a conjecture.
- And you could be stopping at the world's largest ball of yarn, which incidentally, we didn't stop at.
- Ethan, incidentally, invited himself to our family's surprise.
- And anyway, that the commander of that team, who incidentally speaks good English, he, he's become my best friend.
- The psychoanalyst may himself fall under that spell and find in them what his patient has found, and incidentally, what made the Greeks tell those tales.
- Schopenhauer, incidentally, is one of the, you know, philosophers in the West who's really taking Indian philosophy seriously.
- It's right next to the Lamley, which incidentally subtitled movies I saw.
- Beyond this, even though there's a lot more out there, incidentally, it's a lot of mass out there.
- And then incidentally, she joined this the Wave Chasers.
- There was a torrent, incidentally, of of negative tweets after women's hours.
Examples
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Incidentally, this is very interesting.
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How is your mother, incidentally?
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This C here is not the speed of light, incidentally, right?
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Which, incidentally, is not such a bad idea.
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The activity at issue is simply the act of living, and incidentally, of getting older.
Blog text (5) -
Both schools, incidentally, appear on Money magazine's list of schools that offer the best value.
Academic text (1998) -
So if you go here and here, you can go into silent mode, which incidentally makes it run very quiet.
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It's a present, incidentally, but you don't have to thank me.
Fiction book (1994) -
Incidentally, you're a tremendous athlete.
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Incidentally, I met your brother at the store yesterday, incidentally.
Synonyms
∞
1.5
To introduce a new topic that is not directly related
∞
1.0
To add another reason or fact
281
1.6
A phrase to add an extra point and mention a problem when speaking or writing
150
7.2
To add a short extra comment in a message or conversation
25
3.8
While mentioning something briefly without giving it much attention
9
8.1
To introduce a new topic that is related to what was said
3
7.5
As a short side remark that someone adds in parentheses
2
9.0
To say something extra that is not about the main topic
1
7.1
Saying this shows you have just remembered something related
How Related
Surface Forms
Morphology
incidentally = incidental (semi-transparent) = incident + al + ly
The adverbial formation from 'incidental' is regular, but the pragmatic usage 'by the way' is an extension of the adjective's sense and may not be fully predictable to learners.
Etymology
The word incidentally is also used like 'by the way' because it comes from the idea of a small event that 'falls into' a conversation. That's why when you say incidentally you are adding a side note or a new, not central topic.