How to Use unintentional in a Sentence

unintentional

adjective
  • As that daughter, what doesn’t help are the guilt trips, even the unintentional ones.
    — Carolyn Hax, Washington Post, 29 June 2022
  • The fire began in her apartment in the rear of the building, and the cause is believed to be unintentional, Starr said.
    — BostonGlobe.com, 19 Apr. 2021
  • The moment is the first of many unintentional laughs and cringey moments.
    — EW.com, 12 Sep. 2024
  • MacGillis makes a few good points here, one of them unintentional.
    — Glenn Whipp, Los Angeles Times, 16 Apr. 2021
  • The summary does not break down how many of the 86 per year were unintentional.
    — Jason Hanna, CNN, 6 Mar. 2022
  • But the recent die-off of salmon fry was unintentional.
    — Sarah Kuta, Smithsonian Magazine, 8 Mar. 2024
  • Nearly three-quarters of unintentional deaths over the past 10 years have been male, the release said.
    — The Arizona Republic, 25 Feb. 2024
  • The one exception was the rate of deaths by unintentional injury: drug deaths helped push that rate up 2.7%.
    — Janet Adamy, WSJ, 22 Dec. 2020
  • So how did his quest for professional arm wrestling lead him to the wild world of unintentional ASMR?
    — Kelsey Weekman, Rolling Stone, 26 May 2023
  • Israel has said the attacks were aimed at tunnels used by Hamas militants in the area and that the damage to the homes was unintentional.
    — NBC News, 18 June 2021
  • From sleeves that are too lengthy to the unintentional boxy aesthetic, the struggle has been real.
    — Kerane Marcellus, Essence, 19 Oct. 2023
  • That the first three films were all in Spanish, Timpson said, was unintentional.
    — Alison Foreman, IndieWire, 6 Sep. 2024
  • While unintentional, the brand’s funky swimwear-as-daywear made sense.
    — Liana Satenstein, Vogue, 16 Dec. 2020
  • During rough stretches in the season, Thompson has been known to keep the team’s mood light with his unintentional brand of humor.
    — Connor Letourneau, SFChronicle.com, 1 Jan. 2021
  • It was later found to have been unintentional, and the driver was charged with reckless driving.
    — Brady Knox, Washington Examiner, 9 Jan. 2024
  • The flight attendant, who was wearing a face covering, judged the act unintentional and tried to blot away the remnants.
    — Michael Laris, Anchorage Daily News, 2 Jan. 2021
  • This loss of balance can lead to unintentional falls, one of the leading causes of injury in older adults.
    — Laura Baisas, Popular Science, 24 Oct. 2024
  • Manoah said the plunking was unintentional and more a result of his struggles to command his sinker in recent starts.
    — Larry Fleisher, BostonGlobe.com, 21 Aug. 2022
  • McDavid maintained in a postgame interview with TNT that the contact to the head was unintentional.
    — Daniel Nugent-Bowman, The Athletic, 19 Jan. 2025
  • The horrible death in New Mexico last week was one unintentional gun death among hundreds in the U.S. each year.
    — Clifford S. Asness, WSJ, 12 Dec. 2023
  • The unintentional subtext seems to be: Bernardo was a Latino hothead, so his death doesn’t even matter to Maria all that much.
    — Owen Gleiberman, Variety, 2 Dec. 2021
  • The leading cause of death in this age group for the past several years is unintentional drug overdoses.
    — Popular Science, 22 Dec. 2020
  • The show sent an unintentional message: Even when there's every reason to feel pessimistic, there's a chance to seek out sunshine.
    — Halie Lesavage, Harper's BAZAAR, 15 Aug. 2023
  • Israel has said the attacks were aimed at tunnels used by Hamas militants in the area and suggested the damage to the homes was unintentional.
    — Josef Federman, ajc, 27 July 2021
  • The most effective way to prevent unintentional shootings is the absence of guns in homes.
    — Elliot Hughes, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, 20 Sep. 2021
  • Drowning is the second leading cause of unintentional death among young children ages 1 to 4, according to the CDC.
    — Anabel Sosa, Los Angeles Times, 5 July 2022
  • The judge acknowledged the assertion by Trump’s defense that the failure to remove the item was unintentional.
    — Shayna Jacobs, Washington Post, 20 Oct. 2023
  • From the crevice of his ear to the shoelaces on his Converse sneakers, he’s covered entirely in unintentional paint splatters.
    — Fidel Martinez, Los Angeles Times, 28 Dec. 2024
  • In April 2021, a Minnesota jury found Chauvin guilty on state charges of unintentional murder, third-degree murder and manslaughter.
    — Chelsea Bailey, CNN, 6 Mar. 2025
  • In the aftermath, five people were charged in connection with his death, three with negligent homicide, or unintentional manslaughter, and two with supplying drugs.
    — Anna Kaufman, USA TODAY, 4 Mar. 2025

Some of these examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'unintentional.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

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