accidens

English

Etymology

From Latin [Term?].

Noun

accidens (plural accidentia)

1. (logic) Synonym of accident (“a property, fact, or relation that is the result of chance or is nonessential or nonsubstantive”)
   • 1886, Prasanna K. Roy, A Text-book of Deductive Logic: For the Use of Students, page 83:

     An Accidens (or accident) of an individual, genus, or species is any attribute which is possessed by it, and which does not follow from, or form a part of, its comprehension. […] If, on the other hand, an accidens is sometimes present and sometimes absent in an individual, […]

   • 1896, James Welton, A Manual of Logic, volume 1, page 86:

     But, where there is no apparent reason why the attribute should always be found in the individuals of a class, it is called an Accidens.

Related terms

• accidens

Latin

Etymology 1

Present active participle of accidō (“fall down or upon; happen”).

Pronunciation

• (Classical Latin) IPA^(key): /ˈak.ki.dens/, [ˈäkːɪd̪ẽːs̠]
• (modern Italianate Ecclesiastical) IPA^(key): /ˈat.t͡ʃi.dens/, [ˈätː͡ʃid̪ens]

Participle

accidēns (genitive accidentis); third-declension one-termination participle

1. falling down, upon, at or near, descending
2. happening (to), taking place, occurring, befalling

Declension

Third-declension participle.

	singular			plural
	masc./fem.	neuter		masc./fem.	neuter
nominative	accidēns			accidentēs	accidentia
genitive	accidentis			accidentium
dative	accidentī			accidentibus
accusative	accidentem	accidēns		accidentēs accidentīs	accidentia
ablative	accidente accidentī1			accidentibus
vocative	accidēns			accidentēs	accidentia

¹When used purely as an adjective.

Noun

accidēns n (genitive accidentis); third declension

1. accident, circumstance (chance event)
   • 1695, Teutsch-Lateinisches WörterBüchlein Zum Nutz und Ergötzung der Schuljugend zusammengetragen, Und mit 6000. darzu dienlichen Bildern gezieret. Deme noch über das eine kurtzgefaste Lateinische Sprach-Übung Und Zimliche Anzahl Auserlesener Sprüche beygefüget. — Dictionariolum germanico-latinum In Usum & delectationem Scholasticae Juventutis concinnatum, & aliquot millibus huic rei inservientibus Iconibus illustratum. Cui insuper accessit, Epitome Grammatices Latinae cum selectarum Sententiarum Farragine., Nuremberg (Nürnberg, Noriberga), p.197:

     Accidentia nominum sunt septem: Species, Figura, Persona, Genus, Declinatio, Numerus, & Casus.

     Accidents of nouns are seven: species, shape/figure, person, gender, declination, number, & case.

Declension

Third-declension noun (neuter, “pure” i-stem).

	singular	plural
nominative	accidēns	accidentia
genitive	accidentis	accidentium
dative	accidentī	accidentibus
accusative	accidēns	accidentia
ablative	accidentī	accidentibus
vocative	accidēns	accidentia

Descendants

• Catalan: accident
• → Dutch: toeval (calque)
• English: accident
• French: accident
• German: Akzidens n, Akzidenz n; Zufall m (calque)
• Italian: accidente
• Ligurian: açidente
• Portuguese: acidente
• Romanian: accident
• Spanish: accidente

Etymology 2

Form of the verb accīdō (“fell, cut down; use up; impair”).

Pronunciation

• (Classical Latin) IPA^(key): /akˈkiː.dens/, [äkˈkiːd̪ẽːs̠]
• (modern Italianate Ecclesiastical) IPA^(key): /atˈt͡ʃi.dens/, [ätˈt͡ʃiːd̪ens]

Participle

accīdēns (genitive accīdentis); third-declension one-termination participle

1. using up, consuming, diminishing
2. impairing, weakening, shattering

Declension

Third-declension participle.

	singular			plural
	masc./fem.	neuter		masc./fem.	neuter
nominative	accīdēns			accīdentēs	accīdentia
genitive	accīdentis			accīdentium
dative	accīdentī			accīdentibus
accusative	accīdentem	accīdēns		accīdentēs accīdentīs	accīdentia
ablative	accīdente accīdentī1			accīdentibus
vocative	accīdēns			accīdentēs	accīdentia

¹When used purely as an adjective.

References

• “accidens”, in Charlton T. Lewis and Charles Short (1879) A Latin Dictionary, Oxford: Clarendon Press
• accidens in Gaffiot, Félix (1934) Dictionnaire illustré latin-français, Hachette.

Middle French

Noun

accidens m

1. plural of accident