sinecure

[ sahy-ni-kyoor, sin-i- ]

/ ˈsaɪ nɪˌkyʊər, ˈsɪn ɪ- /

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See synonyms for: sinecure / sinecures on Thesaurus.com

noun

an office or position requiring little or no work, especially one yielding profitable returns.

an ecclesiastical benefice without cure of souls.

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Origin of sinecure

First recorded in 1655–65; from Medieval Latin (beneficium) sine cūrā “(benefice) without care (of parishioners).” See cure

OTHER WORDS FROM sinecure

si·ne·cure·ship, nounsi·ne·cur·ism, nounsi·ne·cur·ist, noun

WORDS THAT MAY BE CONFUSED WITH sinecure

cynosure, sinecure

Words nearby sinecure

Sindbad the Sailor, Sindhi, sindon, sindonology, sine, sinecure, sine curve, sine die, Sinemet, sine prole, sine qua non

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use sinecure in a sentence

But, while the title was supposed to be a sinecure, instead Smith went from running for the nation’s highest office to running around trying to rent the highest offices.
The Empire State Building Opened During the Great Depression. Its Survival Story Holds a Lesson for Today|Olivia B. Waxman|April 30, 2021|Time
The job is often a sinecure offered to widely admired figures.
Give Him His Well-Deserved Break|Reihan Salam|July 17, 2010|DAILY BEAST
By the time of the Reform Bill, a sinecure had become an anachronism.
The English Utilitarians, Volume II (of 3)|Leslie Stephen
The business of the worthy padres among them must be a perfect sinecure.
The Tiger Hunter|Mayne Reid

But the man who accepts the position of Indian Agent and conscientiously attends to its duties has no sinecure on his hands.
The Life of Kit Carson|Edward S. Ellis
Tom, however, took his knocks with a good grace, and reaped all the advantage possible out of his dangerous sinecure.
Court Beauties of Old Whitehall|W. R. H. Trowbridge
The dean is the presiding officer in chapel: his business is to pull up the absentees—no sinecure, it is said.
Chambers's Edinburgh Journal, No. 440|Various

British Dictionary definitions for sinecure

sinecure

/ (ˈsaɪnɪˌkjʊə) /

noun

a paid office or post involving minimal duties

a Church benefice to which no spiritual or pastoral charge is attached

Derived forms of sinecure

sinecurism, nounsinecurist, noun

Word Origin for sinecure

C17: from Medieval Latin phrase (beneficium) sine cūrā (benefice) without cure (of souls), from Latin sine without + cūra cure, care

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

sinecure

Origin of sinecure

OTHER WORDS FROM sinecure

WORDS THAT MAY BE CONFUSED WITH sinecure

Words nearby sinecure

Words related to sinecure

How to use sinecure in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for sinecure

Derived forms of sinecure

Word Origin for sinecure