unnecessary en · ADJ
Pronunciation
- /ʌnˈnɛs.ə.ɹɪ/ (UK, US, nonstandard)
- (Australia) audio
- /anˈnes.əˌseɹ.i/ (Australia)
- /ʌnˈnɛs.ə.s(ə)ɹɪ/ (UK)
- /ʌnˈnɛs.əˌsɛɹ.ɪ/ (UK)
- /ʌnˈnɛs.əˌsɛɹ.i/ (US)
- (US) audio
Etymology
Etymology tree Proto-Indo-European *né Proto-Indo-European *n̥- Proto-Germanic *un- Proto-West Germanic *un- Old English un- Middle English un- English un- English necessary English unnecessary From un- + necessary.
Meanings
-
Not needed or necessary.
Every possible economy was carefully investigated and unnecessary expense, however small, eliminated. The company had no money to spare on "frills."
1956 September, 'Precursor', “The Dursley & Midland Junction Railway”, in Railway Magazine, page 599:Yet some of the statin side effects mentioned in the study have not been proved in the scientific literature or are exaggerated and could cause unnecessary worry, he said.
2018 December 3, Jacqueline Howard, “Are statins overprescribed? Why the risks and benefits are so complex”, in CNN:The automatic child-frightener made clowns unnecessary.
Robins, of Torquay, had denied a single charge of causing unnecessary suffering to an animal. She claimed the microwave was accidentally turned on by one of the cats after the kitten got inside. But Knutton said the kitten was too small to even get onto the work surface.
2011 December 14, Steven Morris, “Devon woman jailed for 168 days for killing kitten in microwave”, in The Guardian:
- Done in addition to requirements; unrequired.
Forms
| Spelling | Features | Labels | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| more unnecessary | Degree=Cmp | lexicographic | |
| most unnecessary | Degree=Sup | lexicographic |
Antonyms
mandatory (antonym(s) of “in addition to requirements”) · needed (antonym(s) of “not needed”) · required (antonym(s) of “in addition to requirements”) · necessary (antonym(s) of “not needed”)
Deriveds
unnecessaries · unnecessarily · unnecessariness
Synonyms
innecessary (not needed) · superfluous (not needed) · innecessary (in addition to requirements) · unneeded (not needed) · additional (in addition to requirements) · needless (not needed)
Translations (59)
it eccessivo (not necessary) · it inutile (not necessary) · da unødvendig (not necessary) · ca innecessari (not necessary) · gl innecesario (not necessary) · de unnötig (not necessary) · ml അനാവശ്യമായ (not necessary) · fr non nécessaire (not necessary) · cy diangen (not necessary) · it innecessario (not necessary) · sk zbytočný (not necessary) · ro nenecesar (not necessary) · cmn 多餘的 /多余的 (not necessary) · fr inutile (not necessary) · tr boş yere (not necessary) · ru нену́жный (not necessary) · tr lüzumsuz (not necessary) · et liigne (not necessary) · pl niekonieczny (not necessary) · fi tarpeeton (not necessary) · hu szükségtelen (not necessary) · uk непотрі́бний (not necessary) · hy ավելորդ (not necessary) · ro inutil (not necessary) · mi hiahiakore (not necessary) · es innecesario (not necessary) · ar غَيْر ضَرُورِيّ (not necessary) · el περιττός (not necessary) · pl zbędny (not necessary) · fi turha (not necessary) · hi अनावश्यक (not necessary) · eo nenecesa (not necessary) · ja 余計な (not necessary) · mi huakore (not necessary) · ko 불필요하다 (not necessary) · cmn 不必要 (not necessary) · hy անպետք (not necessary) · bg ненужен (not necessary) · nl onnodig (not necessary) · pdt onneedich (not necessary) · tr gereksiz (not necessary) · sk nepotrebný (not necessary) · ml അനാവശ്യ (not necessary) · sv onödig (not necessary) · pl niepotrzebny (not necessary) · ro netrebuincios (not necessary) · es desnecesario (disused) (not necessary) · mk непотребен (not necessary) · ja 不要な (not necessary) · be непатрэ́бны (not necessary) · no unødvendig (not necessary) · az gərəksiz (not necessary) · ur خواہ مخواہ (not necessary) · az lazımsız (not necessary) · pt desnecessário (not necessary) · it superfluo (not necessary) · la superforāneus (not necessary) · cs nepotřebný (not necessary) · de nicht notwendig (not necessary)