It may look innocent, but inadvertent belongs to a class of words that provoke anger in many people who care about language – to wit, the back-formation.

INADVERTENT definition: 1. not intentional: 2. not intentional: 3. done or happening unintentionally: . Learn more.

Inadvertent definition: unintentional.. See examples of INADVERTENT used in a sentence.

An inadvertent action is one that you do without realizing what you are doing. The government has said it was an inadvertent error.

Definition of inadvertent adjective in Oxford Advanced Learner's Dictionary. Meaning, pronunciation, picture, example sentences, grammar, usage notes, synonyms and more.

inadvertent (ˌɪnədˈvɜːtənt) adj 1. failing to act carefully or considerately; inattentive 2. resulting from heedless action; unintentional

WordReference Random House Unabridged Dictionary of American English © 2025 in•ad•vert•ent (in′əd vûr′ tnt), adj. unintentional: an inadvertent insult. not attentive; heedless. of, pertaining …

When something happens by accident, it's inadvertent, or unintentional. The gas company assured you that the error in your bill was inadvertent and that they would fix it, but not before …

Factsheet What does the adjective inadvertent mean? There are two meanings listed in OED's entry for the adjective inadvertent. See ‘Meaning & use’ for definitions, usage, and quotation …

Synonyms for INADVERTENT: accidental, chance, unexpected, unintentional, unintended, incidental, unwitting, fortuitous; Antonyms of INADVERTENT: intentional, deliberate, intended, …