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surplusage

[sur-pluhs-ij]
See more synonyms for surplusage on Thesaurus.com
noun
  1. something that is surplus; an excess amount.
  2. an excess of words.
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Origin of surplusage

late Middle English word dating back to 1375–1425; see origin at surplus, -age
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Examples from the Web for surplusage

Historical Examples

  • But it is precisely this surplusage which has not cognitive status.

    Essays in Experimental Logic

    John Dewey

  • Well, it is just like I said, it is surplusage to begin with.

    Warren Commission (5 of 26): Hearings Vol. V (of 15)

    The President's Commission on the Assassination of President Kennedy

  • This was the mere wantonness and surplusage of abundant labour.

  • This was a surplusage of duty but not cause for impeachment.

  • In so far forth, they express the surplusage of vitality over need, the creative freedom of life at play.

    Creative Intelligence

    John Dewey, Addison W. Moore, Harold Chapman Brown, George H. Mead, Boyd H. Bode, Henry Waldgrave, Stuart James, Hayden Tufts, Horace M. Kallen

British Dictionary definitions for surplusage

surplusage

noun
  1. law (in pleading, etc) irrelevant matter, such as a superfluous allegation
  2. an excess of words
  3. a less common word for surplus
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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