Which to use
“incidental” is an adjective and “incidents” is a noun - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #19,365
- “incidental” frequency rank
- #5,602
- “incidents” frequency rank
- 24967
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | incidental | incidents |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Loosely associated; of limited relevance except indirectly; only accidentally related. | plural of incident |
Where the spellings diverge
Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set incidental and incidents apart are highlighted. They share 8 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.
Spelling & Dictionary Insight
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: incidental is /ɪnsɪˈdɛntəl/ while incidents is /ˈɪn.sɪ.dənts/. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they differ by 1 letter(s) in length, and the parts of speech differ too (adjective vs noun), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 24967, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
incidental is recorded at frequency rank #19,365, classified as anadj, pronounced /ɪnsɪˈdɛntəl/. incidents is at rank #5,602, tagged as anoun, pronounced /ˈɪn.sɪ.dənts/.
Glosses for this pair are partially populated in our dataset, but the full side-by-side definitions above should still guide you to the right choice.
With a confusion score of 24967, this pair ranks #397,934 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of incidental vs incidents
Shared letters: cdeint. Private to "incidental": al. Private to "incidents": s.
"incidental" · 10 letters · shape VCCVCVCCVC · "incidents" · 9 letters · shape VCCVCVCCC
Known mistypes of this pair
- incidental ← icnidental · inccidental · incdiental · inciddental · incidenatl · incidenntal · incidentall · incidentla
- incidents ← icnidents · inccidents · incdients · inciddents · incidennts · incidenst · incidentss · incidentts
Frequency comparison
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "incidental" and "incidents" be used interchangeably?
Which is more common, "incidental" or "incidents"?
Remembering incidental vs incidents
The fastest way to pick the right one every time.
- Check the role first: if you need an adjective, it's “incidental”; for a noun, it's “incidents”.
- See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “incidental” entry
- Browse more pairs most likely to be confused. Most confusable