different between suddenly vs accidently

English

Etymology

From Middle English sodenly, sodeynly, sodeinliche, sodaynlyche; equivalent to sudden +? -ly.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /?s?dn?li/

Adverb

suddenly (comparative more suddenly, superlative most suddenly)

1. Happening quickly and with little or no warning; in a sudden manner.

   Suddenly, the heavens opened and we all got drenched.

Synonyms

• all of a sudden

Antonyms

• unsuddenly

Derived terms

• suddenliness

Translations

English

Alternative forms

• accidentally

Etymology

From Middle English accidently, accidentli (“by chance; temporarily; artificially”), equivalent to accident +? -ly.

Adverb

accidently (comparative more accidently, superlative most accidently)

1. (now nonstandard) Accidentally; by chance, unintentionally. [from 15th c.]
   • 1792, Mary Wollstonecraft, A Vindication of the Rights of Woman, Penguin 2004, p. 47:

     [T]he exceptions remind me of an ingenious conjecture respecting Newton: that he was probably a being of a superior order, accidently caged in a human body.

Usage notes

In modern usage, the spelling accidently is usually considered a misspelling of accidentally.

Translations

Middle English

Alternative forms

• accidentlych, accidentli

Etymology

From accident +? -ly.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ak?sid?ntli?/, /ak?sid?ntli?t?(?)/

Adverb

accidently

1. by chance, by accident

   Thinges that happen accidentlych. — Cato, 1475

2. temporarily

   He that hath goode vertues is substancially a noble man, and he that hath hem accydently maketh himself noble and is nat. — The Dicts and Sayings of the Philosophers, 1460

3. not naturally, artificially

   It is made naturaly of defecte of materie or accidently of yuel sewing & consoldyng of þe palpebrez. — Guy de Chauliac's Grande Chirurgie, 1425

Descendants

• English: accidently

References

• “accidentl?, adv.”, in MED Online, Ann Arbor, Mich.: University of Michigan, 2007.