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unintentional

unintentional

26 4.1
Happening by accident
  • adjective
  • /ˌʌnɪnˈtɛnʃənl/
translation icon : involuntario
  • I mistakenly bought Sprite instead of ginger ale, and that was the unintentional mistake.
  • unintentional injuries
  • unintentional bias
  • unintentional death

That was that was an unintentional but quite good link there.

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Examples

  • The mistake was an unintentional oversight that he quickly corrected.

  • People have got this unintentional way of disrespecting people or making them feel outcasted.

  • I read my book and honestly had a really nice unintentional little social media break.

  • Many of these unintentional injuries occur during sports, but even more occur during other activities.

    Academic text (2011)
  • When this is included, the problem of unintentional submission instead of saving should be eliminated.

    Academic text (1996)
  • Women further explained that attention received for height was generally consequential and unintentional in social situations.

    Academic text (2013)
  • The net result, although perhaps unintentional, was a fairly objective news program despite the political turmoil.

    Academic text (1993)
  • It was purely unintentional, I assure you.

  • I like to think she left behind her recipe cards as a gesture of goodwill, but it was most likely an unintentional oversight.

  • She made an unintentional error on her application form that affected her chances.

Synonyms

accidental
vsunintentional
118 3.0

Happening by chance and not planned

is about lack of purpose rather than deliberate action
involuntary
vsunintentional
73 5.4

Not done on purpose and not under a person's control

is about absence of deliberate intent rather than lack of control or coercion
unintended
vsunintentional
53 4.1

Not planned and not done on purpose

is identical in meaning but emphasizes lack of purpose
unplanned
vsunintentional
25 3.5

Happening by chance without getting ready first

is about lack of deliberate intent rather than only missing plans
unwitting
vsunintentional
17 6.7

Not aware of what is happening and not done on purpose

is about lack of deliberate intent even when the actor is aware
inadvertent
vsunintentional
15 6.6

Not done on purpose and happening by accident

is broader and covers lack of purpose beyond mere chance
purely coincidental
vsunintentional
3 5.1

Happening only by chance and not planned

is broader and covers acts lacking purpose beyond chance coincidences
undesigned
vsunintentional
7.3

Not planned or done on purpose

focuses on lack of purpose rather than intentional design or planning
inconscient
vsunintentional
9.9

Doing something without thinking, often as a habit

is about not doing something on purpose rather than automatic mental processes
uncommanded
vsunintentional
8.1

Occurs without a person's control and not on purpose, like a sudden laugh

refers to general lack of purpose rather than specific uncontrolled movements

Antonyms

117 3.9

Done on purpose and not by accident

How Intentional

accidental
118 3.0
inadvertent
15 6.6
unintentional
26 4.1
unplanned
25 3.5

Surface Forms

unintentional positive

Morphology

unintentional = intentional (transparent) = un + intent + ional

A simple negative prefix 'un-' added to the adjective 'intentional' yields the clear opposite meaning 'not intentional'.

Etymology

Unintentional starts with un- meaning 'not' and uses intent meaning 'plan' or 'purpose'. So unintentional means 'not done on purpose', something that happens by accident.