vicarious

[ vahy-kair-ee-uhs, vi- ]

/ vaɪˈkɛər i əs, vɪ- /

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See synonyms for vicarious on Thesaurus.com

adjective

performed, exercised, received, or suffered in place of another: vicarious punishment.

taking the place of another person or thing; acting or serving as a substitute.

felt or enjoyed through imagined participation in the experience of others: a vicarious thrill.

Physiology. noting or pertaining to a situation in which one organ performs part of the functions normally performed by another.

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Origin of vicarious

First recorded in 1630–40; from Latin vicārius “substituting,” equivalent to vic(is) (genitive) “interchange, alternation” (see vice³) + -ārius -ary; see -ous

OTHER WORDS FROM vicarious

vi·car·i·ous·ly, adverbvi·car·i·ous·ness, vi·car·i·ism, nounnon·vi·car·i·ous, adjectivenon·vi·car·i·ous·ness, noun

un·vi·car·i·ous, adjectiveun·vi·car·i·ous·ness, noun

Words nearby vicarious

vicarial, vicariance, vicariant, vicariate, vicariate apostolic, vicarious, vicarious hypertrophy, vicariously, vicarious menstruation, vicarly, Vicar of Bray

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2022

How to use vicarious in a sentence

This is evidence of “vicarious traumatization,” Sood says, which can occur when a child hears about a tragedy or sees images of it—even if they don’t experience it firsthand.
School Shootings Are Raising Anxiety and Panic in U.S. Children|Maya Chung|May 27, 2022|Time
One of the perks of the job, Goucher told me, was getting a vicarious thrill of being close to the action of elite-level competition.
How Retired Pro Runners Move On|mmirhashem|November 3, 2021|Outside Online
Acknowledging vicarious trauma and weathering in refugees and migrants from instability itself is important.
Migrants and Refugees Face an Invisible Trauma We Can’t Ignore|Gunisha Kaur|October 21, 2021|Time
I collected bits of them, but my blitz was safely vicarious.
Life Under Air Strikes: Children Under Fire Will Never Forget — or Forgive|Clive Irving|August 3, 2014|DAILY BEAST

But the old city, site of the bull run, has the inevitable trappings of a theme park for aficionados of the vicarious kind.
Is This Hemingway’s Pamplona or a Lot of Bull?|Clive Irving|July 13, 2014|DAILY BEAST
David, I want to shake you and say, do not use our lives as vicarious proof for your consumer conservatism.
David Brooks In The Supermarket Aisles Of Judaism|Gershom Gorenberg|March 13, 2013|DAILY BEAST
He reads biographies, he dreams of great men—a vicarious pleasure, presumably.
Bennett's Emergence—And Obama's?|Bernard Avishai|January 18, 2013|DAILY BEAST
But the appeal of Harlequins is more than just vicarious sex.
How ‘Fifty Shades of Grey’ Is Shaking Up the Business of the Romance Genre|Chris Berube|June 6, 2012|DAILY BEAST
You may think I'm offering myself as a sort of vicarious atonement—if your Doris fails you—but I'm not, really.
The Hidden Places|Bertrand W. Sinclair
This always occasioned a double execution, for the wrath or revenge of Louis was never satisfied with a vicarious punishment.
Quentin Durward|Sir Walter Scott
Here are three measures of subjugation, all flowing from the same fountain of Principle—vicarious government by a feudal superior.
The Trial of Theodore Parker|Theodore Parker
To-day he was in the state of mind when even vicarious good 202 deeds are a support and a consolation.
In Connection with the De Willoughby Claim|Frances Hodgson Burnett
The scandalmonger, inhibited from doing the forbidden thing, enjoys himself by a vicarious indulgence in rottenness.
The Behavior of Crowds|Everett Dean Martin

British Dictionary definitions for vicarious

vicarious

/ (vɪˈkɛərɪəs, vaɪ-) /

adjective

obtained or undergone at second hand through sympathetic participation in another's experiences

suffered, undergone, or done as the substitute for anothervicarious punishment

delegatedvicarious authority

taking the place of another

pathol (of menstrual bleeding) occurring at an abnormal siteSee endometriosis

Derived forms of vicarious

vicariously, adverbvicariousness, noun

Word Origin for vicarious

C17: from Latin vicārius substituted, from vicis interchange; see vice ³, vicissitude

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

Medical definitions for vicarious

vicarious

[ vī-kâr′ē-əs, vĭ- ]

adj.

Felt or undergone as if one were taking part in the experience or feelings of another.

Occurring in or performed by a part of the body not normally associated with a certain function.

vicarious

Origin of vicarious

OTHER WORDS FROM vicarious

Words nearby vicarious

Words related to vicarious

How to use vicarious in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for vicarious

Derived forms of vicarious

Word Origin for vicarious

Medical definitions for vicarious