unnecessary

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unnecessary

/ʌnˈnɛs.ə.s(ə)ɹɪ/ UK
/ʌnˈnɛs.əˌsɛɹ.ɪ/ UK
/ʌnˈnɛs.əˌsɛɹ.i/ US
/ʌnˈnɛs.ə.ɹɪ/ UK, US, nonstandard
/anˈnes.əˌseɹ.i/ Australia

adjective more unnecessary · most unnecessary

Not needed or necessary. The automatic child-frightener made clowns unnecessary.
Similar: superfluous, unneeded, needless, innecessary
Done in addition to requirements; unrequired.
Similar: additional, innecessary

Opposite: necessary, needed, required, mandatory

Thesaurus

Closest in meaning: unneeded, needless, inessential, uncalled-for, gratuitous, spare, redundant, superfluous, extra, excess, surplus, supererogatory, reserve, supernumerary, unessential, nonessential

adjective

Opposite: necessary, needed, required, mandatory

Translations

Every language

adj not necessary

Español	innecesario, desnecesario (disused)
한국어	불필요하다 bulpiryohada
日本語	余計な yokei na, 不要な fuyō na
中文	多餘的 /多余的 duōyú de, 不必要 bù bìyào
हिन्दी	अनावश्यक anāvaśyak
Português	desnecessário
Français	inutile, non nécessaire
Deutsch	nicht notwendig, unnötig
Italiano	innecessario, superfluo, eccessivo, inutile
Ελληνικά	περιττός perittós
Română	inutil, nenecesar, netrebuincios
Русский	нену́жный nenúžnyj
العربية	غَيْر ضَرُورِيّ ḡayr ḍarūriyy

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MLA

"unnecessary." Wiktionary, via Micwyn, micwyn.com/word/unnecessary. Accessed 6 Nov. 2026.

APA

unnecessary. (n.d.). In Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Retrieved November 6, 2026, from https://micwyn.com/word/unnecessary

Chicago

"unnecessary." Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Accessed November 6, 2026. https://micwyn.com/word/unnecessary.

BibTeX

@misc{unnecessary_2026,
  title = {unnecessary},
  howpublished = {Wiktionary, via Micwyn},
  year = {2026},
  url = {https://micwyn.com/word/unnecessary},
  urldate = {2026-11-06}
}