Crossword clues for accidence
The Collaborative International Dictionary
Accidence \Ac"ci*dence\, n. [A corruption of Eng. accidents, pl. of accident. See Accident, 2.]
The accidents, of inflections of words; the rudiments of grammar.
--Milton.The rudiments of any subject.
--Lowell.
Douglas Harper's Etymology Dictionary
late 14c., in philosophy, "non-essential or incidental characteristic," also "part of grammar dealing with inflection" (mid-15c.), in some cases a misspelling of accidents, or else directly from Latin accidentia (used as a term in grammar by Quintilian), neuter plural of accidens, present participle of accidere (see accident). The grammar sense is because they change in accordance with use.
Wiktionary
n. 1 (context grammar English) The '''accidents''', of inflections of words; the rudiments of grammar. 2 A book containing the first principles of grammar, and so of the rudiments of any subject or art. 3 The rudiments of any subject.
WordNet
n. the part of grammar that deals with the inflections of words [syn: inflectional morphology]
Usage examples of "accidence".
I think it was on the third day of the seventh month that I afforded him a day of triumph and warming of his heart, when he took me for the first time into his little study, and put the Latin Accidence into my hands.
My poor lighter-boy, that hath mastered the rudiments, and triumphed over the Accidence —but to die!
In 1626 he published "An Accidence or the Pathway to Experience, necessary to all Young Seamen," and in 1627 "A Sea Grammar, with the plain Exposition of Smith's Accidence for Young Seamen, enlarged.
But wherever he went in Rome, it was always the same -- Sin sin sin, no sanctity, the whole unholy Grammar of sin, syntax, accidence, sin's Entire lexicon set before him, sin.