leftover

[left-oh-ver]

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR leftover ON THESAURUS.COM

noun

Usually leftovers. food remaining uneaten at the end of a meal, especially when saved for later use.

anything left or remaining from a larger amount; remainder.

adjective

being left or remaining, as an unused portion or amount: leftover meatloaf.

Origin of leftover

1890–95; noun use of verb phrase left over; see left²

Synonyms for leftover

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR leftover ON THESAURUS.COM

3. surplus, excess, extra.

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Related Words for leftover

unused, residual, extra, residue, surplus, debris, leavings, legacy, trash, remnants, survivor, untouched, unwanted, unconsumed, uneaten

Examples from the Web for leftover

Contemporary Examples of leftover

In Rwanda, an unbalanced ratio leaves 83 of every 100 citizens dependent on the leftover 17 for survival.
After the Genocide, Rwanda’s Widows Aging Alone
Nina Strochlic
August 31, 2014
Human tails are part of the evolutionary baggage that we carry in our bodies, leftover from our ancestors.
The Crazy Way Creationists Try To Explain Human Tails Without Evolution
Karl W. Giberson
June 1, 2014
This consisted of wine that was now free and leftover cheese.
Backstage at the Razzie Awards, Honoring Hollywood’s Worst Films
David Eckstein
March 2, 2014
Three years on, doesn't it already feel like a leftover from a bygone era?
Occupy Needs to Ride Again
Blake Gopnik
January 13, 2014
Empty the mushrooms from the strainer basket into the pot with the leftover broth.
The Gadget Chef: Reconstructed Chicken Soup
Megan McArdle
November 2, 2012

Historical Examples of leftover

Do not use mixtures which have been leftover and allowed to stand for some time.
The Pecan and its Culture
H. Harold Hume
A can of asparagus, a leftover from the housekeeping of the spring, was unearthed.
Molly Brown of Kentucky
Nell Speed
It was not right that she should be forced to take a leftover.
The Fourth R
George Oliver Smith
This may be used for leftover slices or small pieces of any kind of cooked meat.
Foods That Will Win The War And How To Cook Them (1918)
C. Houston Goudiss and Alberta M. Goudiss
Leftover bits of meat, bone, or gristle may be used alone or with some fresh meat and bone from shin or neck.
Foods That Will Win The War And How To Cook Them (1918)
C. Houston Goudiss and Alberta M. Goudiss

British Dictionary definitions for leftover

leftover

noun

(often plural) an unused portion or remnant, as of material or of cooked food

adjective

left as an unused portion or remnant

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

Word Origin and History for leftover

adj.

also left-over, "remaining, not used up," 1890, from left + over. The noun meaning "something left over" is from 1891; leftovers "excess food after a meal" (especially if re-served later) is from 1878; in this sense Old English had metelaf.