/ kənˈtɪndʒənsi; NAmE / noun
( pl. -ies ) an event that may or may not happen
SYN possibility :
We must consider all possible contingencies.
to make contingency plans (= plans for what to do if a particular event happens or does not happen)
a contingency fund (= to pay for sth that might happen in the future)
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WORD ORIGIN
mid 16th cent. (in the philosophical sense): from late Latin contingentia (in its medieval Latin sense circumstance), from contingere befall, from con- together with + tangere to touch.