unnecessary

[ uhn-nes-uh-ser-ee ]

/ ʌnˈnɛs əˌsɛr i /

SEE SYNONYMS FOR unnecessary ON THESAURUS.COM

adjective

not necessary or essential; needless; unessential.

noun, plural un·nec·es·sar·ies.

unnecessaries, things that are not necessary or essential.

Words nearby unnecessary

unmyelinated, unmyelinated fiber, unnail, unnamed, unnatural, unnecessary, unnerve, unnilennium, unnilhexium, unniloctium, unnilpentium

Origin of unnecessary

First recorded in 1540–50; un-¹ + necessary

OTHER WORDS FROM unnecessary

un·nec·es·sar·i·ly

[uhn-nes-uh-sair-uh-lee, -nes-uh-ser-] /ʌnˌnɛs əˈsɛər ə li, -ˈnɛs əˌsɛr-/, adverbun·nec·es·sar·i·ness, noun

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2020

Example sentences from the Web for unnecessarily

Forty million Americans were inoculated, unnecessarily as it turned out.
How Presidents Handle Pandemics|Eleanor Clift|October 16, 2014|DAILY BEAST
He also found the president and vice president to be unnecessarily distrustful of the military.
Speed Read: Juiciest Bits From Secretary of Defense Bob Gates’ ‘Duty’|William O’Connor|January 8, 2014|DAILY BEAST
The Obama administration argued that Kirk-Menendez was unnecessarily confrontational and encroached on presidential authority.
Iran Nuclear Deal Credit Should Go to Kirk and Menendez, Not Obama|David Frum|September 20, 2013|DAILY BEAST
Like her song, the performance was a bloated, unnecessarily busy mess.
VMAs 2013 Wildest Moments: Lady Gaga, Miley Cyrus & More (VIDEO)|Kevin Fallon|August 26, 2013|DAILY BEAST

A long-term deficit problem needs to be addressed, but we're going about it the wrong way, at an unnecessarily high cost.
We're Cutting the Deficit too Quickly|Justin Green|February 6, 2013|DAILY BEAST
The man Fensden's evidence, given in such a manner as he gave it, was unnecessarily damaging.
The Mystery of the Clasped Hands|Guy Boothby
Truth is truth, but to alarm you at a time like this would be unnecessarily cruel.
The Calm Man|Frank Belknap Long
The year 1758 was one of great activity, on account of the movements of the army, and no time was then unnecessarily lost.
Satanstoe|James Fenimore Cooper
I know that my first movement was one of mistrust, for my answers had been unnecessarily brusque.
The Wasted Generation|Owen Johnson
Kai Lung, however, remained unseen among the trees, not being desirous of obtruding himself upon Ming-shu unnecessarily.
Kai Lung's Golden Hours|Ernest Bramah

British Dictionary definitions for unnecessarily

unnecessary

/ (ʌnˈnɛsɪsərɪ, -ɪsrɪ) /

adjective

not necessary

Derived forms of unnecessary

unnecessarily, adverbunnecessariness, noun

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

unnecessary

adjective

noun, plural un·nec·es·sar·ies.

Words related to unnecessary

Words nearby unnecessary

Origin of unnecessary

OTHER WORDS FROM unnecessary

Example sentences from the Web for unnecessarily

British Dictionary definitions for unnecessarily

adjective

Derived forms of unnecessary