gratuitous

[gruh-too-i-tuhs, -tyoo-]

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.

gratuitous

/ 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

Other Word Forms

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

Word History and Origins

Origin of gratuitous¹

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

Word History and Origins

Origin of gratuitous¹

C17: from Latin grātuītus, from grātia favour

Example Sentences

The producers said their gruesome portrayals of bear attacks were not gratuitous violence but a form of artistic expression "inherent to a monster thriller".

Read more on Barron's

Take the 2019 docuseries “Don’t F**k with Cats,” which includes gratuitous shots of animal violence and shots of a real snuff film.

Read more on Salon

Still, reaching bigger stages will require editing the most gratuitous slurs, if only to broaden the music’s export potential.

Read more on Los Angeles Times

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

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

“Because, respectfully, I cannot abide our repeated, gratuitous, and harmful interference with cases pending in the lower courts while lives hang in the balance, I dissent.”

Read more on Los Angeles Times

Related Words

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