contingency
contingency Lexical Profile
contingency Game Scores & Validity
• noun
A future event or circumstance that is possible but cannot be predicted with certainty, often requiring special preparation.
"The project manager set aside extra funds to cover any unforeseen contingencies during construction."
A provision, plan, or resource kept in reserve for an unforeseen event or emergency.
"Our primary supplier is experiencing delays, so we need to activate our backup contingency immediately."
The absence of certainty in events; the state of being dependent on chance or on the fulfillment of a condition (especially in philosophy and logic).
"The philosopher wrote extensively on the radical contingency of human existence and historical outcomes."
• Rhymes for contingency
• Nearby Words
Word Origin & Etymology
Borrowed in the mid-16th century from Late Latin contingentia ('a happening by chance'), derived from Latin contingere ('to touch closely, befall, or happen'), from com- ('together') + tangere ('to touch').
Usage Trend
Historical frequency of usage in published text.