Coincidentally

Part of speech: adverb

Definitions

1. By an unexpected occurrence, events or circumstances happen together without prior arrangement or intention
2. In a manner that suggests a surprising alignment of actions or events that occur together by chance rather than design
3. Happening as a result of chance when two or more things occur at once

Etymology: "Coincidentally" is built from "coincidental" plus the adverb ending "-ly", and the two halves have quite different histories. The adjective "coincidental" grew from the verb "coincide," which combines the Latin prefix "con-" (together) with "incidere," to fall upon or happen. The Latin root gives the sense of two things falling at the same point, which is still the core of the modern meaning. English took "incident" from the same Latin source, and "coincidental" was formed on it, with the Latin suffix "-alis" arriving in English via Old French and Middle English "-al." The ending is the older and more ordinary part. The "-ly" suffix comes from Old English "-līċe," which in turn descends from a Germanic word meaning "body" or "form," so an adverb like this originally meant something like "in the form of." Over the centuries the suffix was attached to countless adjectives, and "coincidentally" is simply the adverbial version of "coincidental," meaning "in a coincident manner," which came to mean "by chance."

Synonyms: accidentally, fortuitously, by chance, serendipitously, unexpectedly