| 词组 | accidently, accidentally |
| 释义 | accidently, accidentally Shaw 1962 and Watt 1967 disparage the spelling accidently as a misspelling or an illiteracy. Copperud 1970 notes that "although Webster now sanctions the second spelling, it is unusual enough so that it is likely to be considered an error." If the OED is right, accidently was formed in the early 16th century, in a sense now obsolete, from the obsolete adjective accident; by the 17th century it was in occasional use as a variant of accidentally. In the latter use it has continued to appear sporadically up until the present time. Its continued use is undoubtedly encouraged by its more closely representing the usual pronunciation of accidentally than the predominant spelling does. Here are a few 20th-century examples: • ... when the millet stalks which Robin looked upon as breakfast were accidently rustled by a passing foot —Freya Stark, A Winter in Arabia, 1940 • "He asked me if it were true that it was accidently that you were locked up in the museum...." — Oliver St. John Gogarty, Mourning Became Mrs. Spendlove, 1948 • A conniving ranch foreman ... accidently kills the drunken chief —Oscar Lewis, N. Y. Herald Tribune Book Rev., 6 Jan. 1952 • During childhood a brother had accidently shot an arrow into his right eye —Australian Dictionary of Biography, 1966 • ... they promoted him to vice president before accidently discovering the mythical account —Bill Surface, Saturday Rev., 13 July 1968 • One policeman accidently shot another last night — NY. Times, 6 July 1971 • ... the lightweight lambskin jacket, very soft and textured (as the young woman behind me in the bank line kept "accidently" confirming) —Gary B. Trudeau, in a clothing catalog, Summer 1984 The spelling accidently is not an illiteracy, but it is much less frequent than accidentally, and even though it has some reputable use, it may be thought a misspelling. |
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