gratuitous
[gruh-too-i-tuhs, -tyoo-]
- given, done, bestowed, or obtained without charge or payment; free; voluntary.
- being without apparent reason, cause, or justification: a gratuitous insult.
- Law. given without receiving any return value.
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Origin of gratuitous
1650–60; < Latin grātuītus free, freely given, spontaneous, derivative of grātus thankful, received with thanks (for formation cf. fortuitous); see -ous
Synonyms
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018
gratuitous
- given or received without payment or obligation
- without cause; unjustified
- law given or made without receiving any value in returna gratuitous agreement
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Word Origin
C17: from Latin grātuītus, from grātia favour
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition
© William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
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Word Origin and History for non-gratuitous
gratuitous
adj.
1650s, "freely bestowed," from Latin gratuitus "done without pay, spontaneous, voluntary," from gratus "pleasing, agreeable," from gratia "favor" (see grace). Sense of "uncalled for, done without good reason" is first recorded 1690s.
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Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper