parergon

[ pa-rur-gon ]

/ pæˈrɜr gɒn /

noun, plural par·er·ga [pa-rur-guh] /pæˈrɜr gə/.

something that is an accessory to a main work or subject; embellishment.

work undertaken in addition to one's principal work.

Nearby words

parents anonymous, parenty, pareo, parepididymis, parera, parergon, paresis, paresthesia, pareto, pareu, pareunia

Origin of parergon

1595–1605; < Greek párergon, noun use of neuter of párergos beside the main subject, subordinate, equivalent to par- par- + érg(on) work + -os adj. suffix

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

Examples from the Web for parergon

By 1595 the number of maps had increased to 119, including a Parergon or supplement of 12 maps illustrating ancient history.
Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 17, Slice 6|Various
Parergon, pa-rėr′gon, n. a by-work, any work subsidiary to another.
Chambers's Twentieth Century Dictionary (part 3 of 4: N-R)|Various
Sometimes this making or doing was their profession; sometimes it was a parergon carried on deliciously in leisure hours.
The House by the River|A. P. Herbert
Ei d toutous ektrapomenos exelenchoimi, meizon an moi to parergon tou ergou genoito.
On the Natural Faculties|Galen

British Dictionary definitions for parergon

parergon

/ (pəˈrɛəɡɒn) /

noun plural -ga (-ɡə)

work that is not one's main employment

Word Origin for parergon

C17: from Latin, from Greek, from para- 1 + ergon work

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