incidental
[ɪnsɪˈdɛ.ɾ̃əl]adjective, noun
incidental is spelled I-N-C-I-D-E-N-T-A-L: 10 letters and 4 syllables. It appears 2.0 times per million words in written English, the 19,336th most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As an adjective, incidental means “Loosely associated; of limited relevance except indirectly; only accidentally related” (English Wiktionary, September 2026).
How many letters and syllables are in incidental?
| Letters | 10: I-N-C-I-D-E-N-T-A-L |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 4 (from its American pronunciation) |
| In writing | 2.0 times per million words; the 19,336th most frequent word form |
| Wrong spellings searched | none measured in search |
Sources: letters and syllables from the English Wiktionary's hyphenation or pronunciation and the CMU Pronouncing Dictionary; written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How common is incidental?
Incidental appears 2.0 times per million words in written English, the 19,336th most frequent word form in the list.
Source: written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How do you pronounce incidental?
- /ɪnsɪˈdɛntəl/
- /ɪnsəˈdɛntəl/
- US [ɪnsɪˈdɛ.ɾ̃əl]
Incidental has 4 syllables (counted from its American pronunciation in the CMU Pronouncing Dictionary).
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Recordings: En-US_incidental_(enunciated).ogg, En-US_incidental_(nasal_flapping).ogg, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
Forms of incidental
- more incidental comparative
- most incidental superlative
- incidentals plural
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does incidental mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
adjective
- 1
Loosely associated; of limited relevance except indirectly; only accidentally related.
That character, though colorful, is incidental to the overall plot.
- 2
Existing tangentially, being a byproduct, a tangent, or a likely consequence.
Injuries are incidental to contact sports: they're going to happen.
- 3
Occurring by chance.
- 4
Entering or approaching, prior to reflection (more frequently incident).
noun
- 1
Minor items, not further defined. Incidental expense.
She's costing us a lot in incidentals.
- 2
Something that is incidental.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Incidental in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| French | incidental |
| German | zugehörig, beiläufig, anfallend, folgend, nebensächlich, gelegentlich |
| Portuguese | incidental |
| Spanish | incidental , fortuito |
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Translations are Wiktionary's, by sense; a linked word has its own PlainSpell page.
Where does incidental come from?
From incident + -al.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).