circumstantial
/səːkəmˈstanʃəl/US/səɹ.kəmˈstænʃəl/
circumstantial adjective: pertaining to or dependent on circumstances, especially as opposed to essentials; incidental, not essential.
Adjective
circumstantial (comparative more circumstantial, superlative most circumstantial)
- Pertaining to or dependent on circumstances, especially as opposed to essentials; incidental, not essential.
- We must therefore distinguish between the essentials in religious worship […] and what is merely circumstantial.1754, John Sharp, Sermons
- Evidence for cannibalism abounds - even if circumstantial - both from the modern world and throughout history, but academic anthropology has found itself in a funk of denial.2000 September 7, Henry Gee, “Eating people - is it bad taste?”, in The Guardian, →ISSN, archived from the original on 09 May 2014
- Involving evidence that relies on inference to connect it to a conclusion of fact, thus, suggesting guilt but not directly proving it.
- It is unlikely he will be convicted; the evidence against him is circumstantial at best.
- Never, he said, in the course of his long experience, had he known a charge of murder rest on slighter evidence. Not only was it entirely circumstantial, but the greater part of it was practically unproved.1920, Agatha Christie, The Mysterious Affair at Styles, London: Pan Books, published 1954, page 162
- Abounding with minor circumstances; in great detail; particular.
- My Unkle's account is more circumstantial I must confess—but I believe mine is the true one for all that.1777, Richard Brinsley Sheridan, The School for Scandal, V.ii
- For although my information appears too direct and circumstantial to be fictitious, yet the magnitude of the enterprise, the desperation of the plan, and the stupendous consequences with which it seems pregnant, stagger my belief […]1806, James Wilkinson, Letter to Thomas Jefferson (October 21, 1806) (part of Burr conspiracy)
- Full of circumstance or pomp; ceremonial.
Noun
circumstantial (plural circumstantials)
- Something incidental to the main subject, but of less importance.
- the circumstantials of religion
- Antonyms:
- essential
- An adjunct or circumstant.
circumstantial meaning in Urdu, Malayalam, Kannada and Tagalog
circumstantial in Urdu
- عارضی, اتفاقی, تفصیلی
circumstantial in Malayalam
- സാഹചര്യപരമായ, കാര്യവശാൽ ജനിച്ച, സാന്ദർഭികമായ
circumstantial in Kannada
- ಸಾಂದರ್ಭಿಕ, ಪರಿಸ್ಥಿತಿ ಜನ್ಯ, ಸವಿವರವಾದ
circumstantial in Tagalog
- abounding with circumstances; minute in details
- kapangyayari
Examples of circumstantial in a sentence
- One of the results of perspectivalization is the circumstantial and contextual suspension of a literal ontological attitude.
- There had been circumstantial evidence that Prenter targeted other victims online.
- Proof of the role of AA excess in the development of PCOS is circumstantial at best.
Synonyms of circumstantial
Antonyms
Forms of circumstantial
| Adjective | |
|---|---|
| comparative | more circumstantial |
| superlative | most circumstantial |
| Noun | |
| plural | circumstantials |
Origin of circumstantial
From Latin circumstantia + English -al, equivalent to circumstance + -ial.
Words formed from circumstantial
Questions about circumstantial
- What does circumstantial mean?
- Circumstantial means pertaining to or dependent on circumstances, especially as opposed to essentials; incidental, not essential.
- What is circumstantial in Urdu?
- Circumstantial in Urdu is عارضی, اتفاقی, تفصیلی. See Circumstantial meaning in Urdu.
- What part of speech is circumstantial?
- Circumstantial can be an adjective or a noun.
- How do you pronounce circumstantial?
- Circumstantial is pronounced /səɹ.kəmˈstænʃəl/ (US).
Words near circumstantial in the dictionary
Source and license
Adapted from Wiktionary: circumstantial (page history and authors); circumstantial (Urdu Wiktionary) (page history and authors); circumstantial (Malayalam Wiktionary) (page history and authors); circumstantial (Kannada Wiktionary) (page history and authors). Text available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 license. Word.ws reformatted the entry and added links. Wiktionary data of 2026-09-02.
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Pronunciation audio from Wikimedia Commons, each file under its own free license: LL-Q1860 (eng)-Vealhurl-circumstancial.wav.
Cite this entry: “circumstantial.” Word.ws, https://word.ws/circumstantial. Based on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.