przypadkowe

Przypadkowe is a Polish adjective meaning “accidental,” “incidental,” or “random,” depending on context. It describes something that happens by chance rather than by intention or design. In everyday language it can refer to events, discoveries, or observations that are not planned. In scientific or statistical contexts, losowy is often preferred when the emphasis is on randomness rather than mere happenstance.

Etymology: The word derives from the noun przypadek, meaning an occurrence, event, or accident. The adjective forms include masculine przpadkowy, feminine przypadkowa, and neuter przypadkowe. The neuter singular form przypadkowe is used with neuter nouns such as zdarzenie (event) or zdjęcie (photo).

Nuance and usage: Przypadkowe often stresses unplannedness or incidental character, and can carry a sense of serendipity. For a strictly probabilistic sense, przpadkowy is less precise than losowy. The related adverb is przypadkowo (by chance, accidentally). Related nouns include przypadek.

Examples: przypadkowe spotkanie (a chance encounter) and przypadkowe odkrycie (an accidental or serendipitous discovery). In contexts emphasizing randomness or sampling, phrases using losowy (random) are typically preferred over przypadkowe.