Incidentalness

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. The state of being secondary involves aspects that are not central or primary, highlighting occurrences that arise as a byproduct of main events or actions
2. This characteristic denotes features or factors deemed unimportant or peripheral, emphasizing their role in relation to more significant matters
3. The quality of something being minor or arising alongside primary matters without central importance

Etymology: "Incidentalness" is simply "incidental" with the suffix "-ness" attached, and the suffix does the work of turning an adjective into a noun for a quality. "Incidental" itself comes from the Latin "incidere," meaning "to fall upon" or "to happen," built from "in-" ("upon") and "cadere" ("to fall"). The adjective's sense of something that falls in alongside a main thing, rather than being its core, is what gives the noun its meaning of minor, secondary status. The suffix "-ness" is an old English formation, attached to adjectives to name the state or quality they describe, so "kindness" names the state of being kind. Attaching it to "incidental" produces a noun for the condition of being incidental, a usage that English speakers have formed freely on this pattern.

Synonyms: peripheralness, nonessentiality

Antonyms: essentialness, importance