gratuitous

American  

[gruh-too-i-tuhs, -tyoo-] / grəˈtu ɪ təs, -ˈtyu- /

adjective

1. being without apparent reason, cause, or justification.

   It looks to me like a baseless and gratuitous insult—like you have a huge chip on your shoulder.

   Synonyms:

   gratis, groundless, unreasonable, redundant, superfluous, unnecessary

2. given, done, bestowed, or obtained without charge or payment; free; complimentary.

3. Law. given without receiving any return value.

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gratuitous British  

/ ɡrəˈtjuːɪtəs /

adjective

1. given or received without payment or obligation

2. without cause; unjustified

3. law given or made without receiving any value in return

   a gratuitous agreement

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Other Word Forms

• gratuitously adverb
• gratuitousness noun
• nongratuitous adjective
• nongratuitousness noun
• ungratuitous adjective
• ungratuitousness noun

Etymology

Origin of gratuitous

First recorded in 1650–60; from Latin grātuītus “free, freely given, spontaneous,” derivative of grātus “thankful, received with thanks” (for formation cf. fortuitous); see -ous

Explanation

Gratuitous means "without cause" or "unnecessary." Telling ridiculous jokes at a somber occasion would be a display of gratuitous humor. Gratuitous can be used to refer to something that’s unnecessary and mildly annoying. If a friend frequently gives you fashion tips, even though you’ve expressed no interest in receiving them, you’d be correct in labeling her advice as gratuitous. In addition, gratuitous can be used to indicate that something is not only unnecessary but also inappropriate. Some people claim that some films and video games contain gratuitous violence — that is, violence that is excessive and offensive.

Example Sentences

Banerjee also criticised what he called an excess of "gratuitous violence", arguing that "it is social media hype that is deciding the film's fate."

From Barron's • Jan. 25, 2026

Plus, frankly, there are those within Labour who would rather he didn't come back to Westminster, such has been, as they see it, the gratuitous nature of his manoeuvring for the top job.

From BBC • Jan. 22, 2026

Ms. King seeds her love story with engaging dialogue and literary references that are never pretentious or gratuitous.

From The Wall Street Journal • Oct. 9, 2025

His decision for the court, handed down on Wednesday, is an incoherent mess of contradiction and casuistry, a travesty of legal writing that injects immense, gratuitous confusion into the law of equal protection.

From Slate • Jun. 18, 2025

The praise is never phony, and the criticism never gratuitous.

From "Drama High" by Michael Sokolove

Related Words

• baseless
• groundless
• needless
• superfluous
• unfounded
• unjustified
• unprovoked
• unwarranted
• wanton