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View synonyms for extraneous

extraneous

[ik-strey-nee-uhs]

adjective

  1. introduced or coming from without; not belonging or proper to a thing; external; foreign.

    extraneous substances in our water.

    Antonyms: intrinsic
  2. not pertinent; irrelevant.

    an extraneous remark; extraneous decoration.

    Antonyms: relevant, pertinent


extraneous

/ ɪkˈstreɪnɪəs /

adjective

  1. not essential

  2. not pertinent or applicable; irrelevant

  3. coming from without; of external origin

  4. not belonging; unrelated to that to which it is added or in which it is contained

“Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged” 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
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Other Word Forms

  • extraneously adverb
  • extraneousness noun
  • nonextraneous adjective
  • nonextraneously adverb
  • nonextraneousness noun
  • unextraneous adjective
  • unextraneously adverb
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Word History and Origins

Origin of extraneous1

First recorded in 1630–40; from Latin extrāneus “external, foreign,” equivalent to extr(a)- extra- + -ān(us) -an + -eus -eous
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Word History and Origins

Origin of extraneous1

C17: from Latin extrāneus external, from extrā outside
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Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

Ms. Fanning is important in playing Marissa’s sympathetic friend and partner in guilt; in her job as a book marketer, she has something of an extraneous subplot to pursue.

That they’re the only black principals brings something new to the story, and alliance, and something extraneous to the message of Hedda’s social suffocation and the motive for her misdeeds.

The department’s justification was blunt, casting the survey as “redundant, costly, politicized and extraneous,” saying that the report had “failed to present anything more than subjective, liberal fodder.”

Read more on Salon

Named after former West Virginia Democratic Sen. Robert Byrd, the rule bans provisions deemed “extraneous” to the federal budget from being included in reconciliation bills.

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Several of the provisions Republican senators have proposed violate the Byrd Rule, she said, which is a 1985 rule the Senate adopted that says "extraneous" provisions cannot be tacked onto "reconciliation" bills.

Read more on BBC

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