otiose

[oh-shee-ohs, oh-tee-]

adjective

1. being at leisure; idle; indolent.

   Synonyms: slothful, lazy

2. ineffective or futile.

   Synonyms: profitless, hollow, vain, ineffectual

3. superfluous or useless.

   Synonyms: pointless, worthless, redundant

otiose

/ -ˌəʊz, ˌəʊtɪˈɒsɪtɪ, ˈəʊtɪˌəʊs /

adjective

1. serving no useful purpose

   otiose language

2. rare,  indolent; lazy

Other Word Forms

• otiosely adverb
• otiosity noun
• otioseness noun

Word History and Origins

Origin of otiose¹

First recorded in 1785–95; from Latin ōtiōsus “at leisure, inactive, undisturbed,” equivalent to ōti(um) “leisure, spare time” + -ōsus adjective suffix; -ose ¹

Word History and Origins

Origin of otiose¹

C18: from Latin ōtiōsus leisured, from ōtium leisure

Example Sentences

The problem is all this could become otiose if Donald Trump imposes huge tariffs on Chinese imports and triggers a global trade war.

Read more on BBC

Insisting that every branch also have a vault and a cash-handling teller would be otiose, Torstendahl told me, especially given the sharp decline in cash transactions in the past decade.

Read more on The New Yorker

But when Chairman Mao Zedong unleashed his socialist society, dog ownership, like golf or capitalism, was regarded as an otiose affectation.

Read more on Time

His own girl sat sprawled out gracelessly on an overstuffed sofa with an expression of otiose boredom.

Read more on Literature

Ludicrously, it was binned in favour of a hammy and otiose version of the Beatles’ Across the Universe.

Read more on The Guardian