unnecessarily
English
editEtymology
editFrom unnecessary + -ly.
Adverb
editunnecessarily (comparative more unnecessarily, superlative most unnecessarily)
- In an unnecessary way; not by necessity.
- Synonyms: needlessly, pointlessly, uselessly, for no reason
- He unnecessarily repeated much of what others had covered.
- 1610–1611 (date written), William Shakespeare, “The Tempest”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies […] (First Folio), London: […] Isaac Iaggard, and Ed[ward] Blount, published 1623, →OCLC, [Act I, scene i]:
- There be […] lords that can prate
As amply and unnecessarily
As this Gonzalo;
- 1753, Samuel Richardson, The History of Sir Charles Grandison[1], London, Volume 1, Letter 33, p. 235:
- Pray let not any-body unnecessarily be acquainted with this shocking affair;
- 1864 August – 1866 January, [Elizabeth] Gaskell, “A Crisis”, in Wives and Daughters. An Every-day Story. […], volume I, London: Smith, Elder and Co., […], published 1866, →OCLC, pages 113-114:
- “Wait a moment,” said he, quite unnecessarily, for she could not have stirred;
- 1950, C. S. Lewis, chapter 17, in The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe[2], New York: Macmillan:
- […] they made good laws and kept the peace and saved good trees from being unnecessarily cut down,
- To an extent beyond what is needed.
- Synonym: unduly
- The food provided was unnecessarily generous, especially for an event meant to raise money for the hungry.
- 1776, Adam Smith, An Inquiry into the Nature and Causes of the Wealth of Nations[3], London: W. Strahan and T. Cadell, Volume 2, Book 5, Part 1, pp. 307-308:
- In the days of their [the Roman armies’] grandeur, when no enemy appeared capable of opposing them, their heavy armour was laid aside as unnecessarily burdensome, their laborious exercises were neglected as unnecessarily toilsome.
- 1814 May 9, [Jane Austen], chapter XI, in Mansfield Park: […], volume II, London: […] [George Sidney] for T[homas] Egerton, […], →OCLC, page 245:
- His absence was unnecessarily long.
- 2007, Alan Bennett, The Uncommon Reader[4], New York: Farrar, Straus and Giroux, published 2008, page 28:
- […] it seemed that she used his name unnecessarily often,
Antonyms
editRelated terms
editTranslations
editin an unnecessary way
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