casual

casual

happening by chance; unexpected; fortuitous: a casual meeting; not dressy: a casual event

Not to be confused with:

causal – of or implying a cause; relating to or of the nature of cause and effect: a causal factor

Abused, Confused, & Misused Words by Mary Embree Copyright © 2007, 2013 by Mary Embree

ca·su·al

 (kăzh′o͞o-əl)

adj.

1.

a. Being without ceremony or formality; relaxed or informal: a casual evening with friends.

b. Unpremeditated or offhand: a casual remark.

c. Suited for everyday wear or informal use: casual clothing.

2. Not serious or thorough; superficial: a casual inspection; a casual understanding of French.

3. Showing little interest or concern; nonchalant: "speaks with casual aplomb about being shot at" (Janelle Brown).

4. Occurring or being such by chance: "in the first months when I was pregnant, before it was obvious to the casual observer" (Anne Roiphe). See Synonyms at chance.

5.

a. Occurring at irregular or infrequent intervals; occasional: casual employment at a factory; a casual correspondence with a former teacher.

b. Employed on an irregular basis: casual workers.

6.

a. Socialized with only occasionally; not close or intimate: a casual acquaintance.

b. Being or occurring between sexual partners who are not in an established relationship: casual lovers; casual sex.

n.

1. One that serves or appears at irregular intervals, especially a temporary worker.

2. casuals Casualwear: sent my casuals to the cleaners.

3. A soldier temporarily attached to a unit while awaiting permanent assignment.

---

[Middle English casuel, due to chance, unpredictable, from Old French, from Latin cāsuālis, from cāsus, event; see case¹.]

---

ca′su·al·ly adv.

ca′su·al·ness n.

American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright © 2016 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

casual

(ˈkæʒjʊəl)

adj

1. happening by accident or chance: a casual meeting.

2. offhand; not premeditated: a casual remark.

3. shallow or superficial: a casual affair.

4. being or seeming unconcerned or apathetic: he assumed a casual attitude.

5. (Clothing & Fashion) (esp of dress) for informal wear: a casual coat.

6. occasional or irregular: casual visits; a casual labourer.

7. (Biology) biology another term for adventive

n

8. (Clothing & Fashion) (usually plural) an informal article of clothing or footwear

9. an occasional worker

10. (Biology) biology another term for an adventive

11. (Soccer) (usually plural) a young man dressed in expensive casual clothes who goes to football matches in order to start fights

[C14: from Late Latin cāsuālis happening by chance, from Latin cāsus event, from cadere to fall; see case¹]

ˈcasually adv

ˈcasualness n

Collins English Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged, 12th Edition 2014 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1994, 1998, 2000, 2003, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2011, 2014

cas•u•al

(ˈkæʒ u əl)

adj.

1. happening by chance: a casual meeting.

2. without definite or serious intention; offhand: a casual remark.

3. seeming or tending to be indifferent; apathetic: a casual air.

4. appropriate for wear or use on informal occasions; not dressy.

5. irregular; occasional: a casual visitor.

n.

6. a worker employed only irregularly.

7. a soldier temporarily at a station and waiting for transportation or assignment to a permanent station.

[1325–75; Middle English casuel < Middle French < Latin cāsuālis=cāsu(s) case¹ + -ālis -al¹]

cas′u•al•ly, adv.

cas′u•al•ness, n.

Random House Kernerman Webster's College Dictionary, © 2010 K Dictionaries Ltd. Copyright 2005, 1997, 1991 by Random House, Inc. All rights reserved.

casual

See: transient.

Dictionary of Military and Associated Terms. US Department of Defense 2005.

Thesaurus

Adj.	1.	casual - marked by blithe unconcern; "an ability to interest casual students"; "showed a casual disregard for cold weather"; "an utterly insouciant financial policy"; "an elegantly insouciant manner"; "drove his car with nonchalant abandon"; "was polite in a teasing nonchalant manner" insouciant, nonchalant unconcerned - lacking in interest or care or feeling; "the average American...is unconcerned that his or her plight is the result of a complex of personal and economic and governmental actions...beyond the normal citizen's comprehension and control"; "blithely unconcerned about his friend's plight"
	2.	casual - without or seeming to be without plan or method; offhand; "a casual remark"; "information collected by casual methods and in their spare time" unplanned - without apparent forethought or prompting or planning; "an unplanned economy"; "accepts an unplanned order"; "an unplanned pregnancy"; "unplanned remarks"
	3.	casual - appropriate for ordinary or routine occasions; "casual clothes"; "everyday clothes" daily, everyday informal - not formal; "conservative people unaccustomed to informal dress"; "an informal free-and-easy manner"; "an informal gathering of friends"
	4.	casual - occurring or appearing or singled out by chance; "seek help from casual passers-by"; "a casual meeting"; "a chance occurrence" chance unplanned - without apparent forethought or prompting or planning; "an unplanned economy"; "accepts an unplanned order"; "an unplanned pregnancy"; "unplanned remarks"
	5.	casual - hasty and without attention to detail; not thorough; "a casual (or cursory) inspection failed to reveal the house's structural flaws"; "a passing glance"; "perfunctory courtesy" cursory, perfunctory, passing careless - marked by lack of attention or consideration or forethought or thoroughness; not careful; "careless about her clothes"; "forgotten by some careless person"; "a careless housekeeper"; "careless proofreading"; "it was a careless mistake"; "hurt by a careless remark"
	6.	casual - occurring from time to time; "casual employment"; "a casual correspondence with a former teacher"; "an occasional worker" occasional irregular - contrary to rule or accepted order or general practice; "irregular hiring practices"
	7.	casual - characterized by a feeling of irresponsibility; "a broken back is nothing to be casual about; it is no fooling matter" fooling light - psychologically light; especially free from sadness or troubles; "a light heart"
	8.	casual - natural and unstudied; "using their Christian names in a casual way"; "lectured in a free-and-easy style" free-and-easy informal - not formal; "conservative people unaccustomed to informal dress"; "an informal free-and-easy manner"; "an informal gathering of friends"
	9.	casual - not showing effort or strain; "a difficult feat performed with casual mastery"; "careless grace" effortless easy - posing no difficulty; requiring little effort; "an easy job"; "an easy problem"; "an easy victory"; "the house is easy to heat"; "satisfied with easy answers"; "took the easy way out of his dilemma"

Based on WordNet 3.0, Farlex clipart collection. © 2003-2012 Princeton University, Farlex Inc.

casual

adjective

1. careless, relaxed, informal, indifferent, unconcerned, apathetic, blasé, offhand, nonchalant, insouciant, lackadaisical an easy-going young man with a casual approach to life
careless concerned, serious, committed, enthusiastic, passionate

2. chance, unexpected, random, accidental, incidental, unforeseen, unintentional, fortuitous (informal), serendipitous, unpremeditated It was just a casual meeting.
chance planned, expected, fixed, arranged, deliberate, foreseen, intentional, premeditated

3. informal, leisure, sporty, non-dressy I bought casual clothes for the weekend.
informal formal, ceremonial, dressy

4. temporary, short-term, occasional, part-time, uncertain, irregular I've been doing casual work in a hostel for five months.

5. promiscuous I don't believe in having casual sex.

6. perfunctory, careless, cursory, offhand, nonchalant I stood up and gave a casual glance behind me.

Collins Thesaurus of the English Language – Complete and Unabridged 2nd Edition. 2002 © HarperCollins Publishers 1995, 2002

casual

adjective

1. Occurring unexpectedly:

accidental, chance, contingent, fluky, fortuitous, inadvertent, odd.

2. Unconstrained by rigid standards or ceremony:

easy, easygoing, informal, natural, relaxed, spontaneous, unceremonious, unrestrained.

Informal: laid-back.

The American Heritage® Roget's Thesaurus. Copyright © 2013, 2014 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

Translations

عَرَضيغَيْرُ رَسْميغَيْر مُتَعَمَّد، غَيرْ مَقصود، عابِرغَيْر مُنْتَظَممُسْتَرِيح

brigádníkletmýnáhodnýneformálnínenucený

afslappetflygtigtilfældiguformel

zufälligflüchtiggelegentlichgleichgültigleger

ανέμελος

informaldespreocupadoeventualfortuitoocasional

satunnainen

désinvoltefortuitindifférentinformelrapide

ležeran

hétköznapikényelmesköznapiközvetlenlezser

ígripa-lausleguróformlegurófyrirhugaîur

accidentalecasualenoncuranteoccasionale

偶然の

무심한

atsainiaiatsainumasatsainuskasdieninisneapgalvotas

gadījumaikdienas-nejaušsneoficiālsneparedzēts

achteloos

flyktigfritids-løs-midlertidignonchalant

niedbały

casual

легкомысленный

letmý

ravnodušenslučajenšporten

ledig

ไม่จริงจัง

düzensizgeçicigelişigüzelgündelikgünlük

hững hờ

临时的偶然的漫不经心的随便的非正式的

casual

[ˈkæʒjʊəl]

A. ADJ

1. (= not planned) [walk, stroll] → sin rumbo fijo, al azar; [meeting, encounter] → fortuito; [caller] → ocasional
it was just a casual conversation between strangers → no era más que una conversación para pasar el rato entre extraños
to the casual eye → a simple vista
he ran a casual eye down the page → le echó un vistazo a la página
a casual glance → una ojeada
to the casual observer → para el observador ocasional
a casual remark → un comentario hecho a la ligera
she gave him a casual wave → lo saludó informalmente con la mano

2. (= offhand) [attitude] → despreocupado, poco serio; [manner] → informal; [tone] → informal, poco serio
he tried to appear/sound casual → intentó parecer/sonar relajado
he was very casual about it → no le dio mucha importancia
to assume a casual air → hacer como si nada

3. (= informal) [discussion] → informal; [clothing] → de sport, informal
casual wear → ropa de sport, ropa informal

4. (= occasional) [drinker, drug user, relationship] → esporádico
he's just a casual acquaintance → es un conocido nada más
casual sex → relaciones fpl sexuales promiscuas

5. (= temporary) [labour, work, employment] → eventual
on a casual basis → temporalmente, eventualmente
casual worker (in office, factory) → trabajador(a) m/f eventual; (on farm) → trabajador(a) m/f temporero/a, jornalero/a m/f

B. N casuals (= shoes) → zapatos mpl de sport; (= clothes) → ropa f de sport, ropa f informal

Collins Spanish Dictionary - Complete and Unabridged 8th Edition 2005 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1971, 1988 © HarperCollins Publishers 1992, 1993, 1996, 1997, 2000, 2003, 2005

casual

[ˈkæʒuəl] adj

(= unconcerned) [attitude, person] → désinvolte
a casual attitude → une attitude désinvolte

(= irregular) [work, labour, worker] → temporaire

(= chance) [observer] → de passage; [remark] → fait(e) en passant; [meeting] → fortuit(e)
It was just a casual remark → C'était juste une remarque en passant.

[clothes] → décontracté(e)
I prefer casual clothes → Je préfère les vêtements décontractés.
casual wear → vêtements mpl sport inv

(not committed, not sustained) [affair] → sans engagement; [contact] → ordinaire
The virus is not transmitted through casual contact → Le virus ne se transmet pas par contact ordinaire.
casual sex → rapports mpl sexuels occasionnels
a casual acquaintance → une simple connaissance

Collins English/French Electronic Resource. © HarperCollins Publishers 2005

casual

adj

(= not planned) → zufällig; acquaintance, glance → flüchtig; we were in the area, so we paid them a casual visit → wir waren gerade in der Gegend und haben sie bei der Gelegenheit besucht

(= offhand, careless) → lässig; attitude → gleichgültig; remark → beiläufig; (= lacking emotion) → gleichgültig; it was just a casual remark → das war nicht so ernst gemeint, das habe ich/hat er etc nur so gesagt; he was very casual about it → es war ihm offensichtlich gleichgültig; (in reaction) → das hat ihn kaltgelassen or nicht tangiert (inf); you shouldn’t be so casual about it → du solltest das nicht so leichtnehmen or auf die leichte Schulter nehmen; he tried to sound casual → er tat so, als ob ihm das nichts ausmachen würde; he had a rather casual manner for a policeman → für einen Polizisten war er ziemlich salopp or lässig; the casual observer → der oberflächliche Betrachter

(= informal) → zwanglos; discussion, chat also → ungezwungen; clothes → leger; a casual shirt → ein Freizeithemd nt; casual wear → Freizeitkleidung f; he was wearing casual clothes → er war leger gekleidet; I want something casual (when buying clothes) → ich möchte etwas Sportliches or Lässiges

(= irregular) work, worker, labourer → Gelegenheits-; (= occasional) drug user, sexual partner → gelegentlich; affair, relationship → locker; casual drinker → Gelegenheitstrinker(in) m(f); casual friendship → oberflächliche Freundschaft; casual sex → Gelegenheitssex m, → freie Liebe

n

casuals pl (= shoes) → Slipper pl

(= casual worker) → Gelegenheitsarbeiter(in) m(f); casuals → Aushilfen pl

(also football casual) → Fußballrowdy m

Collins German Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged 7th Edition 2005. © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1980 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1997, 1999, 2004, 2005, 2007

casual

[ˈkæʒjʊəl]

1. adj

a. (by chance, meeting) → fortuito/a, casuale; (walk, stroll) → senza meta precisa; (glance) → di sfuggita; (remark) → fatto/a di sfuggita
we're just casual acquaintances → ci conosciamo appena
to have casual sex → avere avventure

b. (unconcerned, attitude, person) → noncurante, indifferente, disinvolto/a
he was very casual about it → si è mostrato indifferente

c. (informal, discussion, tone) → informale; (clothing) → sportivo/a, casual inv
casual wear → casual m

d. (irregular, work) → saltuario/a; (worker) → saltuario/a, avventizio/a

2. casuals npl (shoes) → calzature fpl sportive

Collins Italian Dictionary 1st Edition © HarperCollins Publishers 1995

casual

(ˈkӕʒuəl) adjective

1. not careful. I took a casual glance at the book. onverskillig عَرَضي небрежен descuidado zběžný, letmý flüchtig flygtig απρόσεκτος, αδιάφορος, πρόχειροςdespreocupado, rápido pealiskaudne سطحی؛ بی دقت välinpitämätön rapide, en passantמקרי आकस्मिक slučajan, nemaran felületes sambil lalu lauslegur fortuito, indifferente なにげない 무심결에 nerūpestingas, atsainus, paviršutiniškas paviršs pandangan yang bersahaja achteloosflyktig, nonchalantpobieżny اتفاقى، كله كله، تصادفى: بې قاعدې descuidado neatent, neglijent беглый letmý bežen površan hastig, lätt โดยไม่ตั้งใจ rasgele, gelişigüzel 漫不經心的 недбалий بے پروا ، لا ابالی hững hờ 漫不经心的

2. informal. casual clothes. informeel غَيْرُ رَسْمي всекидневен informal neformální, nenucený ungezwungen uformel πρόχειρος, σπορinformal vaba (riietus) غیررسمی rento sportפשוט अनौपचारिक prigodan, ležeran (hét)köznapi santai óformlegur informale ふだん着の 격식을 차리지 않은 kasdieninis, paprastas neoficiāls; ikdienas- pakaian kasual informeeluformell, fritids-swobodny غیر رسمی informal casual, neoficial, de fie­care zi повседневный každodenný športen (obleka) ležeran ledig, bekväm, fritids- ไม่เป็นทางการ günlük, gündelik 非正式的 повсякденний غیر رسمی thường phục 非正式的

3. happening by chance. a casual remark. toevallig غَيْر مُتَعَمَّد، غَيرْ مَقصود، عابِر непредвиден casual náhodný zufällig tilfældig τυχαίοςocasional, fortuito juhuslik, möödaminnes öeldud اتفاقی؛ تصادفی satunnainen fortuitאקראי बिना सोचे-विचारे slučajan véletlen kebetulan ófyrirhugaður casuale 偶然の 우연한 neapgalvotas nejaušs; neparedzēts secara kebetulan terloopstilfeldigprzypadkowy اتفاقى، كله كله، تصادفى casual în­tâm­­plător попутный náhod-ný slučajen slučajan i förbigående โดยบังเอิญ tesadüfî, tesadüfen olan 偶然的 випадковий اتفاق سے tình cờ 偶然的

4. not regular or permanent. casual labour. los غَيْر مُنْتَظَم нередовен ocasional příležitostný gelegentlich tilfældig έκτακτος, προσωρινόςeventual juhu- گاه به گاه؛ نامرتب epäsäännöllinen temporaire לא קָבוּע अनियत povremen, usputni alkalmi sambilan ígripa- occasionale, saltuario 臨時の 임시적 atsitiktinis gadījuma buruh sambilan tijdelijkløs-, midlertidig dorywczy کله کله ocasional pro­vizoriu временный príležitostný priložnosten povremen tillfällig เป็นบางครั้งบางคราว düzensiz, geçici 臨時的 нерегулярний غیر مستقل ، عارضی thất thường 临时的

ˈcasually adverb

toevalligerwys عَرَضا، مُصادَفَةً небрежно ocasionalmente uvolněně; náhodně zufällig tilfældigt; uformelt τυχαία, ανέμελα casualmente juhuslikult, möödaminnes بطور اتفاقی rennosti par hasardבאקראי आकस्मिक रूप से, अनियमितता पूव्रक povremeno, prigodno véletlenül; alkalomszerűen kebetulan af tilviljun; kæruleysislega per caso, casualmente 偶然に 우연히 nerūpestingai, atsainiai pavirši; nejauši secara kasual achteloostilfeldig, uformelt pobieżnie, nieoficjalnie, mimochodem تصادفن ocasionalmente întâmplător; la întâmplare попутно; небрежно náhodne slučajno ležerno i förbigående, tillfälligt, lättvindigt อย่างเป็นบางครั้งบางคราว; อย่างไม่เป็นทางการ rasgele, dikkatsizce 漫不經心地，偶然地 випадково عارضی طور پر، کبھی کبھی một cách tình cờ 漫不经心地，偶然地

ˈcasualness noun

toevalligheid عَرَضِيَّه، مُصادَفَه случайност casualidade náhodnost; neformálnost; nedbalost die Gleichgültigkeit tilfældighed ανεμελιά, αδιαφορία, άνεσηcasualidad pealiskaudsus خودمانی بودن؛ اتفاقی بودن huolettomuus désinvolture אַקרַאיוּת आकस्मिक, अनियमितता ležernost alkalomszerűség ketaksengajaan kæruleysi casualità 偶然さ 우연, 격식 없음 nerūpestingumas, atsainumas paviršums; nejaušums berkaitan kasual achteloosheidtilfeldighet pobieżny/nieoficjalny charakter اتفاقی وه casualidade nepăsare случаиность; небрежность náhodnosť sproščenost ležernost flyktighet, lättvindighet ความเป็นบางครั้งบางคราว; ความไม่เป็นทางการ düzensizlik, kayıtsızlık 漫不經心 випадковість عارضی ہونا tính tình cờ 随便，漫不经心

Kernerman English Multilingual Dictionary © 2006-2013 K Dictionaries Ltd.

casual

→ مُسْتَرِيح nonšalantní afslappet gleichgültig ανέμελος despreocupado, informal satunnainen informel ležeran noncurante 偶然の 무심한 achteloos skjødesløs niedbały casual легкомысленный ledig ไม่จริงจัง umursamaz hững hờ 随便的

Multilingual Translator © HarperCollins Publishers 2009

casual

a. casual, accidental.

English-Spanish Medical Dictionary © Farlex 2012