nonessential

American  

[non-uh-sen-shuhl] / ˌnɒn əˈsɛn ʃəl /

Or non-essential

adjective

1. not essential; not necessary.

   Nonessential use of gasoline was forbidden during the war.

   Synonyms:

   extrinsic, incidental, unnecessary

---

noun

1. a nonessential thing or person.

nonessential British  

/ ˌnɒnɪˈsɛnʃəl /

adjective

1. not essential; not necessary

2. biochem (of an amino acid in a particular organism) able to be synthesized from other substances

---

noun

1. a nonessential person or thing

Etymology

Origin of nonessential

First recorded in 1745–55; non- + essential

Example Sentences

Exxon evacuated its nonessential staff from the Middle East earlier this month.

From The Wall Street Journal

The IEA’s recommendations also include slower highway speeds, greater use of public transport and car sharing, cutting nonessential air travel and encouraging electric cooking, among other measures.

From The Wall Street Journal

State Department telling nonessential staff to get out of Saudi Arabia after attacks there killed workers from India and Bangladesh.

From Los Angeles Times

Embassies had let nonessential staff in locations like Israel and Lebanon leave but had generally told their citizens to register and shelter in place.

From The Wall Street Journal

“New York City has not faced a storm of this scale in the last decade,” he said, urging residents to avoid nonessential travel.

From The Wall Street Journal

Related Words

• unnecessary