in ‧ ci ‧ dent S3 W2 AC /ˈɪnsəd ə nt, ˈɪnsɪd ə nt/ BrE AmE noun [countable]
[ Date: 1400-1500 ; Language: French ; Origin: Latin , present participle of incidere 'to fall into' ]
1 . an event, especially one that is unusual, important, or violent:
Am I at risk because of some incident in my sexual past?
Roads were sealed off because of a major incident.
without incident
The plane landed without incident.
REGISTER
Incident is used mainly in journalism or in formal contexts. In everyday English, people usually say something happened rather than talking about an incident :
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Am I at risk because of something that happened in my past?
2 . a serious disagreement between two countries:
You could have caused a major diplomatic incident.
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COLLOCATIONS
■ adjectives
▪ a serious incident
The road is closed following a serious incident earlier today.
▪ a major incident (=very serious)
The most recent major incident was an explosion at an oil refinery.
▪ a small/minor incident
An apparently minor incident sparked off rioting.
▪ the whole incident
The whole incident was caught on CCTV.
▪ a separate incident
Young men were killed in two separate incidents on the same day.
▪ a related incident (=connected to another incident)
The report describes a number of related incidents.
▪ an isolated incident (=one that happens on its own, not together with others)
Luckily the attack turned out to be an isolated incident.
▪ the latest incident (=the most recent one)
In the latest incident a post office was broken into.
▪ a dramatic incident (=unexpected and exciting)
Viewers watched the dramatic incident on the television news.
▪ a violent incident
There have been several violent incidents at football matches recently.
▪ a tragic incident (=one that involves someone’s death)
Andrew’s father was lost at sea in this tragic incident.
▪ an unfortunate incident (=involving an accident or argument)
Disciplinary action may be taken over this unfortunate incident.
▪ an embarrassing incident
He left after an embarrassing incident in the bar.
▪ a strange/unusual incident
Any unusual incidents should be reported to the police.
▪ a shooting/stabbing incident (=when someone is shot or stabbed)
Two men died today in a shooting incident.
■ verbs
▪ an incident happens
The incident happened as Mrs Edwards was walking her dog.
▪ an incident occurs formal
The tragic incident occurred just after midnight.
▪ cause an incident
His carelessness caused a major incident.
▪ provoke/spark off an incident (=cause it to happen suddenly)
It is claimed that the police provoked the incident.
▪ be involved in an incident
All those involved in the incident were sacked.
▪ deal with/handle an incident
The police were criticized for the way in which they handled the incident.
▪ describe an incident
Police asked the victim to describe the incident.
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THESAURUS
▪ event something that happens, especially something important, interesting, or unusual:
He spoke of the tragic event in which more than 100 people died.
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recent political events
▪ occurrence /əˈkʌrəns $ əˈkʌrəns/ formal something that happens – used especially when saying how often something happens:
Divorce is a common occurrence these days.
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Storms like this one are fortunately a rare occurrence.
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Accidents are almost a daily occurrence on this road.
▪ incident something that happens, especially something that is unusual or unpleasant, or something that is one of several events:
He died after a violent incident outside a nightclub.
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This latest incident could put an end to his career.
▪ occasion an important social event or celebration:
She only wore the dress for special occasions.
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It was his 100th birthday, and friends and family gathered to mark the occasion.
▪ affair [usually singular] something that happens, especially something shocking in political or public life which involves several people and events:
The affair has caused people to lose confidence in their government.
▪ phenomenon /fɪˈnɒmənən, fɪˈnɒmɪnən $ fɪˈnɑːmənɑːn, -nən/ something that happens or exists in society, science, or nature, especially something that is studied because it is difficult to understand:
natural phenomena such as earthquakes
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Homelessness is not a new phenomenon.