incident

Everyday

1. An incident is something that happens, especially something unusual, unpleasant or dangerous. tree →
2. (formal) An incident is used in police and news reports for a crime, accident or fight, sometimes as a softer word. tree →

In the lessons

In school and safety texts an incident is any event to report: a fall, a fight, a fire alarm. Teachers write incident reports. Phrases: «report an incident», «without incident», «a minor incident».

Examples

• Please report any incident to a teacher. tree →
• There was a small incident in the playground. tree →
• The trip went without incident. tree →
• Police are investigating the incident. tree →
• The incident book records every accident. tree →
• There were 3 incidents on Monday and 5 on Tuesday; how many in all? tree →
• Sometimes, however, a less familiar incident occurs. tree →

Note

Countable. Do not confuse with «accident» (unplanned harm) or «incidence» (how often something happens). Formal reports may use «incident» to soften something serious.