Accidentally vs. Accidently
Accidentally vs. Accidently: Understanding the Right Usage
When it comes to the English language, even the most seasoned writers occasionally fall victim to the complexities of spelling and usage. One common point of confusion arises between the words "accidentally" and "accidently." Although they sound alike, these two terms have distinct meanings and usages. In this article, we’ll explore the differences, clarify their definitions, and provide tips for correct usage to help you avoid common pitfalls.
What Does "Accidentally" Mean?
The term "accidentally" is an adverb derived from the adjective "accidental," meaning something that happens by chance or unintentionally. It describes actions or occurrences that are not planned or intended.
Example Usage:
- "I accidentally spilled coffee on my laptop."
- "She accidentally sent the email to the wrong recipient."
This adverb is widely accepted in both spoken and written English and is the correct form to convey that something has happened unexpectedly or by mistake.
The Misconception of "Accidently"
The word "accidently" is a common misspelling of "accidentally." While it may appear in some informal writings or errors, it is not recognized as a standard English word in reputable dictionaries or formal texts. This confusion can lead to misunderstanding, especially for non-native speakers trying to master the subtleties of English.
Common Confusion:
Many people mistakenly believe that both terms can be used interchangeably; however, this is not the case. "Accidentally" remains the only correct usage in all formal writing contexts.
Why This Matters
Using the correct form is essential for effective communication. Misusing words can not only confuse your readers but can also undermine your credibility as a writer. Proper grammar and spelling enhance clarity and professionalism, making your content more effective.
Tips for Correct Usage
-
Remember the "ally": The adverb "accidentally" includes the suffix "-ally," which is commonly used to form adverbs from adjectives, as in "naturally," "officially," and "temporarily."
-
Read Widely: Familiarize yourself with well-edited publications, such as Merriam-Webster Dictionary and Oxford English Dictionary, to see how terms are used correctly in context.
-
Proofread Your Work: Before publishing or sending any piece of writing, take the time to proofread. Consider using proofreading tools or grammar checkers that can help identify spelling errors.
-
Associate with Context: Create sentences that help you remember the term. For instance, "I repeatedly said it was an accident, but she thought I did it on purpose."
Conclusion
In summary, it's essential to use "accidentally" correctly, as it is the only accepted spelling of the adverb indicating something occurs by chance. The misspelling "accidently" should be avoided to maintain clarity and professionalism in your writing.
By being mindful of such nuances in language, you can greatly improve your written communication skills. Always strive for accuracy to ensure your writing conveys the intended message clearly and effectively. For further reading on commonly confused words, you can visit resources like Grammar Girl for more insights.
Happy writing!
Want to generate unlimited academic essays?
Unlock endless possibilities for your academic writing! 
Our tool helps you craft high-quality, original essays in no time. Whether you're tackling complex topics or need help structuring your thoughts, we've got you covered. Start creating with ease and elevate your academic performance today!
About Paraphrase Tool
Getting your wording just right
Paraphrasing is a natural part of the writing process as it helps you clarify your thinking and suit your words to your audience. Using a Paraphrase Tool helps structure and streamline this work, and our paraphrase tool offers 20 modes, many of them free, for accomplishing just this. The 20 modes we offer are diverse, including a summarize tool, a free grammar checker, a mode to simplify text, and a sentence shortener. There are sentence rephrasers and paraphrase rephrase tools, and we pride ourselves on having both, since our reword generator accounts for context at both the sentence and paragraph levels.
When you google paraphrase you will get a variety of results, from a free Paraphrase Tool, to an article spinner, to a general phrase tool, and it can be hard to determine which of these rephrase tools will best help you complete your work. If you simply need to get a word rephrase, that is, reword only small elements within the sentence, many tools will suffice, but there is the risk that you end up with a tool that does not consider context and produces very awkward and ungrammatical sentences. Rephrasing is very much an art, and we’ve built our paraphrase bot to produce the most correct results in 20 modes in over 100 languages, making it the best paraphrasing tool at an exceptionally low cost. So whether you need to paraphrase deutsch, paraphrase greek, or paraphrase bahasa melayu, the next time you think, I need something to paraphrase this for me, you’ll know where to turn.
From keywords to paragraphs
Generating paragraphs with unique ideas can be challenging, and too often writers get stuck at this stage of the writing process. With our paragraph tool, you can enter keywords and let our AI generate paragraphs for you, so that you can have something to work with, refine the output, and become more engaged in your writing.
A paragraph generator creates links between your ideas, such that the output is sensible, unique, and stimulating, very close to what you would expect a thoughtful human paragraph writer to produce.
Paragraph makers are nice, but what about a short story generator? Because our AI is generalized, it serves a story generator, an essay generator, a poem generator, and much more. To generate compelling stories, you should provide the story generator with useful keywords from which it can develop plot elements, including characters, setting details, and any situational information. To generate reasonably good essays, you should likewise provide the essay maker with details around argumentative positions and any other pertinent ideas. If you more specifically want an introduction paragraph generator or conclusion paragraph generator, you can provide starter text and keywords that will best enable our essay creator to produce them.
You may well ask, “is this essay generator free?” Everything on this site is free within a 3-day trial, so you can test and develop confidence in our products. You may also be wondering where this is an essay automatic writer or if it will take a while to get results. All results appear within a matter of seconds, so you can move through your work as quickly as possible.
You may have professional needs for creating paragraphs as well, such as those needed for cover letter. Most of the time a cover letter template includes information that is not relevant to you; by using your own keywords, we can produce cover letter examples that are relevant to your use case and often require very little editing. By using this service, you can also learn how to write a cover letter and achieve the cover letter format you need.
Plagiarism checker free
Like everything else on our site, you can check plagiarism free within a trial, which is a great opportunity for those who want to check a paper for plagiarism without committing to paying before they see results. This free plagiarism checker is great for students and clearly indicates how to check for plagiarism by highlighting areas of similarity between the two texts. Just to be sure you are not accidentally plagiarizing, be sure to check all of your paraphrases as well.