sedentary

[sed-n-ter-ee]

See more synonyms for sedentary on Thesaurus.com

adjective

characterized by or requiring a sitting posture: a sedentary occupation.
accustomed to sit or rest a great deal or to take little exercise.
Chiefly Zoology.
1. abiding in one place; not migratory.
2. pertaining to animals that move about little or are permanently attached to something, as a barnacle.

Origin of sedentary

1590–1600; < Latin sedentārius sitting, equivalent to sedent- (stem of sedēns, present participle of sedēre to sit¹; see -ent) + -ārius -ary

Related formssed·en·tar·i·ly

[sed-n-tair-uh-lee, sed-n-ter-] /ˌsɛd nˈtɛər ə li, ˈsɛd nˌtɛr-/, adjectivesed·en·tar·i·ness, nounnon·sed·en·tar·i·ly, adverbnon·sed·en·tar·i·ness, nounnon·sed·en·tar·y, adjectivepre·sed·en·tar·y, adjectiveun·sed·en·tar·y, adjective

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Related Words for sedentary

inactive, desk, idle, seated, settled, sitting, sluggish, stationary, torpid, desk-bound

Examples from the Web for sedentary

Contemporary Examples of sedentary

That reserve gets smaller with sedentary lifestyles, and with age.
Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg’s Risky Heart Surgery
Dr. Anand Veeravagu, MD
November 26, 2014
The doctors said it was as strong as an ox, considering he was so sedentary.
Gore Vidal’s Tragic Final Decade
Tim Teeman
November 8, 2013
Americans spend twice as much time in cars as in the 1970s and average more than 26 hours per week of sedentary entertainment.
Bloomberg's Soda Ban Might Not Have Worked
Justin Green
April 15, 2013
One celebrated study found that mortality rates for swimmers were lower than for those who are sedentary, walkers, and runners.
Swimming to Health? Excerpt of Lynn Sherr’s ‘Swim: Why We Love the Water’
Lynn Sherr
April 8, 2012
Masters Swimmers have lower average heart rates than sedentary controls.
Swimming to Health? Excerpt of Lynn Sherr’s ‘Swim: Why We Love the Water’
Lynn Sherr
April 8, 2012

Historical Examples of sedentary

His answer was, that he had been used to a sedentary employment.
The Book of Anecdotes and Budget of Fun;
Various
Of meditative and sedentary habits, I enjoyed the extreme quiet.
Masterpieces of Mystery
Various
This is so, probably, because I'm a school teacher and sedentary in my habits.
Astounding Stories of Super-Science April 1930
Various
I have, I confess, but indifferent skill in these sedentary arts.
The Apologia and Florida of Apuleius of Madaura
Lucius Apuleius
His wild outbursts are the result, I think, of his sedentary life.
An Anarchist Woman
Hutchins Hapgood

British Dictionary definitions for sedentary

sedentary

adjective

characterized by or requiring a sitting positionsedentary work
tending to sit about without taking much exercise
(of animals) moving about very little, usually because of attachment to a rock or other surface
(of animals) not migratory

Derived Formssedentarily, adverbsedentariness, noun

Word Origin for sedentary

C16: from Latin sedentārius, from sedēre to sit

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 sedentary

adj.

1590s, "remaining in one place," from Middle French sédentaire (16c.) and directly from Latin sedentarius "sitting, remaining in one place," from sedentem (nominative sedens), present participle of sedere "to sit; occupy an official seat, preside; sit still, remain; be fixed or settled," from PIE root *sed- (1) "to sit" (cf. Sanskrit a-sadat "sat down," sidati "sits;" Old Persian hadis "abode;" Greek ezesthai "to sit," hedra "seat, chair, face of a geometric solid;" Old Irish suide "seat, sitting;" Welsh sedd "seat," eistedd "sitting;" Old Church Slavonic sežda, sedeti "to sit;" Lithuanian sedmi "to sit;" Russian sad "garden," Lithuanian soditi "to plant;" Gothic sitan, Old English sittan "to sit;" see sit). Of persons, the sense "not in the habit of exercise" is recorded from 1660s.