• billwashere@lemmy.world
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    4 days ago

    I think “inadvertently” fits in that it isn’t what they were intending to do.

    “Accidentally” feels sorta judgy.

    • petrol_sniff_king@lemmy.blahaj.zone
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      2 days ago

      I think a journalist might choose the word ‘unintentionally’; inadvertently is a bit clunky, it lacks a bit of music, and it gives me a sense of slapstick comedy. This sentence, for instance, “Having inadvertently caused the death of her son,” sounds to me like the son died as a result of some Pink Panther bit.

      I don’t think ‘accidentally’ here needs to feel judgy per se, but it is hard to imagine an English major choosing it.

      • billwashere@lemmy.world
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        2 days ago

        Yeah I like “unintentionally” better as well.

        Why do I feel like we are making AI better by having this conversation?

    • paraphrand@lemmy.world
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      4 days ago

      Yeah. “It was an accident” sounds like pleading, excusing. “I inadvertently…” sounds like an explanation of the facts. imo