You can think of an accident as something that simply happens — nobody planned it, nobody aimed for it, it just fell out that way. The whole word grows from that one idea: events arriving by chance rather than by design. From there it leans, in everyday use, toward chance events that go badly — a fall, a crash, a spill.
From the word’s history
From Latin 'accidere' = to happen, to fall (toward), built from 'ad-' (to) + 'cadere' (to fall) — literally 'to fall upon you', i.e. an event that befalls you rather than one you bring about.
源自拉丁文 accidere，意為「發生、落到（某處）」，由 ad-（向）+ cadere（落下）組成，字面是「落到你身上」——指降臨在你身上、而非你主動造成的事。這正好對上核心畫面：事情自己發生，不是你安排的。
Online Etymology Dictionary (etymonline.com), 'accident'
登入就可以看每一支怎麼連回核心畫面。
原始詞典資料18 筆記錄
以下是外部詞典記錄的用法，摘錄並精簡格式，我們還沒有寫成教學內容。上面的說明才是我們自己寫的；有些用法可能上面已經講過了。
Accidentname
- 1
A town in Garrett County, Maryland, United States.
accidentnoun/ˈæk.sɪ.dənt/
- 1
An unexpected event with negative consequences occurring without the intention of the one suffering the consequences, and (in the strict sense) not directly caused by humans.
- to die by an accident such as an act of God
- Wherein I spake of most disastrous chances, / Of moving accidents by flood and field[…]
- 2
lawAn unexpected event with negative consequences occurring without the intention of the one suffering the consequences, and (in the strict sense) not directly caused by humans.
- 3
transportA collision or crash of a vehicle, aircraft, or other form of transportation that causes damage to the transportation involved; and sometimes injury or death to the transportation's occupants or bystanders in close proximity. (but see Usage notes)
- There was a huge accident on I5 involving 15 automobiles.
- My insurance went up after the second accident in three months.
- 4
Any chance event.
- He also objects to the idea of women arising by an accident of nature, preferring the notion that they came about as a 'result of some strong mental impression', and so 'the sex of the progeny would have been settled by the decision of the progenitor'.
- 5
Chance; random chance.
- c.1861-1863, Richard Chevenix Trench, in 1888, Letters and memorials, Volume 1, Thou cam'st not to thy place by accident, / It is the very place God meant for thee; […]
- And so with his writing, which he proudly said was a perfect counterpart of his life. Accident played a major part in both.
- 6
Any property, fact, or relation that is the result of chance or is nonessential or nonsubstantive.
- Beauty is an accident.
- Lexical gaps are called accidental because their existence is by accident; it is not essential.
- 7
grammarhuman-scienceslinguisticsAny property, fact, or relation that is the result of chance or is nonessential or nonsubstantive.
- An adjective, so called because adjectitious, or added to a substantive, denotes some quality or accident of the substantive to which it is joined […]
- 8
An instance of incontinence.
- We weren’t there long when Karin asked about our dog. When we told her Chris was in the car, she insisted we bring him up to the apartment. I rejected her offer and said he might have an accident on the carpet and I didn’t want to worry about it.
另外 8 個記錄的用法
- 9
An instance of incontinence.
- 10
An unintended pregnancy.
- 11
derogatoryAn unintended pregnancy.
- Taylor was our sweet little accident, and we're so glad!
- 12
obsoleteAn injury.
- Accident is a word which too commonly suffers a like perversion. It is used as if it meant a wound.
- This little manual contains simple directions for the preliminary treatment of accidents to all parts of the body and of such diseases as persons are suddenly seized with.
- 13
geographygeologynatural-sciencesAn irregular surface feature with no apparent cause.
- 14
geographygeologynatural-sciencesA sudden discontinuity of ground such as fault of great thickness, bed or lentil of unstable ground.
- 15
governmentheraldryhobbiesA point or mark which may be retained or omitted in a coat of arms.
- 16
entertainmentlifestylemusicSynonym of accidental.
accidentadj/ˈæk.sɪ.dənt/
- 1
transportDesignating any form of transportation involved in an accident.
- The NTSB report revealed that the accident airplane was a Cessna 172.
摘錄自 英文維基詞典 English Wiktionary，已精簡格式；依 CC BY-SA 4.0 授權使用，改動後的內容同樣以此授權提供。