circumstantial

Suggesting that something happened through related facts, rather than showing it directly.

• The evidence was circumstantial.
• The case relied entirely on circumstantial proof.
• A circumstantial link connected him to the stolen car.

Similar words: indirect

Opposites: direct

Common phrases: circumstantial evidence, circumstantial proof, purely circumstantial

Connected with the particular situation, rather than with what is basic or essential.

• These differences are circumstantial.
• The delay had a circumstantial cause.
• We must separate essential problems from circumstantial factors.

Similar words: incidental, situational

Opposites: essential

Common phrases: circumstantial factors, circumstantial differences, circumstantial cause

Including many small details about an event or situation.

• She gave a circumstantial account of the journey.
• His circumstantial narrative included every meal and stopping place.
• The archive preserves a circumstantial description of the wedding.

Similar words: detailed, thorough, minute

Opposites: brief

Common phrases: circumstantial account, circumstantial narrative, circumstantial description

Marked by grand ceremonies and impressive public display.

• The king entered in a circumstantial procession.
• A circumstantial ceremony marked the opening of parliament.
• The wedding was a grand and circumstantial occasion.

Similar words: ceremonial, pompous

Common phrases: circumstantial ceremony, circumstantial procession

A small detail connected with a subject but less important than its main parts.

• He dismissed the date as a mere circumstantial.
• The writer focused on essentials rather than circumstantials.
• Even an unimportant circumstantial could distract the committee.

Similar words: incidental, detail

Opposites: essential

Common phrases: mere circumstantial, unimportant circumstantial

An optional sentence part that adds information such as when, where, or how something happens.

• This phrase functions as a circumstantial.
• The clause contains a circumstantial of time.
• You can remove the circumstantial without making the sentence incomplete.

Similar words: adjunct, circumstant

Common phrases: temporal circumstantial, locative circumstantial, circumstantial of manner