accidente

accident

noun ah-chee-DEN-teh Rare

Origin: Latin accidens, from accidere (to happen)

Also means

mishap

Usage Note

Accidente means an accident or mishap, but beware: in everyday speech accidente! is a mild expletive of surprise or frustration, similar to 'damn!'. The plural accidenti! intensifies the exclamation. For a traffic accident, Italians more commonly say incidente (un incidente stradale), while accidente leans toward misfortune or sudden ill event.

Examples

"Fortunatamente non ci fu alcun accidente."

Natural Translation

Fortunately there was no mishap.

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