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Occasionally vs Incidentally - What's the difference?

occasionally | incidentally |

As adverbs the difference between occasionally and incidentally

is that occasionally is from time to time; now and then; once in a while; irregularly; at infrequent intervals while incidentally is (manner) in an incidental manner; not of central or critical importance.

occasionally

English

Adverb

(en adverb)
  • From time to time; now and then; once in a while; irregularly; at infrequent intervals.
  • *1592 , Gabriel Harvey, "Fovre Letters", Miscellaneous Tracts , page 56
  • *:Were nothing els di?cour?ively in?erted (as ?ome little el?e occa?ionally pre?ented it ?elfe), what paper more currently fit for the bare?t mechanicall u?es,...
  • *1619 , John Richardson, John Toland, The canon of the New Testament Vindicated , page 30
  • *:I think it is plain, that Origen'', whatever Character he may have occa?ionally given of this Book, did not judge it any part of the ''Canon ...
  • *1639 , Henry Ainsworth, Annotations Upon the Five Books of Moses, the Book of the Psalmes and the Song of Songs , page 177.
  • *:God ?etteth no houres for the morning or evening ?acrifice because they may occa?ionally be changed.
  • * 1855 , Horace Mann, "On the Statistical Position of Religious Bodies in England and Wales," Journal of the Statistical Society of London , vol. 18, no. 2, p. 152,
    • Some perhaps worship only on alternate Sundays; others still more occasionally .
  • * 1978 , Stephen R. Graubard, "Twenty Years of 'Daedalus'," Bulletin of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences , vol. 32, no. 3, p. 18,
    • The journal, more occasionally , has turned to what might be called "fashionable" themes.
  • * 2007 , Matt Gouras/AP, " Wildfires Rage in Montana," Time , 17 Aug,
    • Flames could still be seen from town flaring up occasionally on a hill dotted with emergency vehicles.

    incidentally

    English

    Adverb

    (en adverb)
  • (manner) In an incidental manner; not of central or critical importance.
    • The book discussed the subject, but only incidentally .
  • By chance; in an unplanned way.
  • (speech act, conjunctive) Parenthetically, by the way.
    • Incidentally , did you hear anything new from your brother yesterday?

    Synonyms

    apropos, as a matter of fact, by the way

    Antonyms

    * (in an incidental manner) inevitably, certainly