Adjacent Words

Superfluous definitions

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Webster's 1828 Dictionary

SUPER'FLUOUS, a. [L. superfluus, overflowing; super and fluo, to flow.]
1. More than is wanted; rendered unnecessary by superabundance; as a superfluous supply of corn.
2. More than sufficient; unnecessary; useless; as a composition abounding with superfluous words. Superfluous epithets rather enfeeble than strengthen description. If what has been said will not convince, it would be superfluous to say more.
Superfluous interval, in music, is one that exceeds a true diatonic interval by a semitone minor.
Superfluous polygamy, (Polygamia superflua,) a kind of inflorescence or compound flower, in which the florets of the disk are hermaphrodite and fertile, and those of the ray, though female or pistiliferous only, are also fertile; designating the second order of the class Syngenesia of Linne.
Superfluous sound or tone, is one which contains a semitone minor more than a tone.

WordNet (r) 3.0 (2005)

adj
1: serving no useful purpose; having no excuse for being; "otiose lines in a play"; "advice is wasted words"; "a pointless remark"; "a life essentially purposeless"; "senseless violence" [syn: otiose, pointless, purposeless, senseless, superfluous, wasted]
2: more than is needed, desired, or required; "trying to lose excess weight"; "found some extra change lying on the dresser"; "yet another book on heraldry might be thought redundant"; "skills made redundant by technological advance"; "sleeping in the spare room"; "supernumerary ornamentation"; "it was supererogatory of her to gloat"; "delete superfluous (or unnecessary) words"; "extra ribs as well as other supernumerary internal parts"; "surplus cheese distributed to the needy" [syn: excess, extra, redundant, spare, supererogatory, superfluous, supernumerary, surplus]

Merriam Webster's

adjective Etymology: Middle English, from Latin superfluus, literally, running over, from superfluere to overflow, from super- + fluere to flow — more at fluid Date: 15th century 1. a. exceeding what is sufficient or necessary ; extra b. not needed ; unnecessary 2. obsolete marked by wastefulness ; extravagant • superfluously adverb • superfluousness noun

Oxford Reference Dictionary

adj. more than enough, redundant, needless. Derivatives: superfluously adv. superfluousness n. Etymology: ME f. L superfluus (as SUPER-, fluere to flow)

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

Superfluous Su*per"flu*ous, a. [L. superfluus overflowing; super over, above + fluere to flow. See Super-, and Fluent.] More than is wanted or is sufficient; rendered unnecessary by superabundance; unnecessary; useless; excessive; as, a superfluous price. --Shak. An authority which makes all further argument or illustration superfluous. --E. Everett. Superfluous interval (Mus.), an interval that exceeds a major or perfect interval by a semitone. Syn: Unnecessary; useless; exuberant; excessive; redundant; needless. -- Su*per"flu*ous*ly, adv. -- Su*per"flu*ous*ness, n.

Collin's Cobuild Dictionary

Something that is superfluous is unnecessary or is no longer needed. My presence at the afternoon's proceedings was superfluous... ADJ

Soule's Dictionary of English Synonyms

a. Excessive, superabundant, redundant, exuberant, unnecessary, needless, useless, expletive, more than enough.

Moby Thesaurus

accessory, accidental, additional, adscititious, adventitious, aimless, appurtenant, ascititious, auxiliary, casual, circumstantial, collateral, contingent, de trop, dispensable, excess, excessive, expendable, expletive, extra, feckless, fortuitous, gratuitous, impotent, in excess, incidental, ineffective, ineffectual, inessential, left, leftover, meaningless, needless, net, no go, nonessential, odd, of no use, outstanding, over, pleonastic, pointless, prolix, purposeless, redundant, remaining, remanent, secondary, spare, subsidiary, superabundant, superadded, supererogatory, supernumerary, supervenient, supplemental, supplementary, surplus, surviving, tautologic, tautologous, to spare, unasked, unavailing, uncalled-for, unconsumed, unessential, unnecessary, unneeded, unused, unwanted, useless, verbose