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vicarious

Browse the Dictionary:: A; B; C; D; E; F; G; H; I; J; K; L; M; N; O; P; Q; R; S; T; U; V; W; X; Y; Z; #

vicarious

Main Entry:: vi·car·i·ous
Pronunciation:: \vī-ˈker-ē-əs, və-\
Function:: adjective
Etymology:: Latin vicarius, from vicis change, alternation, stead — more at week
Date:: 1637

1 a: serving instead of someone or something else b: that has been delegated <vicarious authority>2: performed or suffered by one person as a substitute for another or to the benefit or advantage of another : substitutionary <a vicarious sacrifice>3: experienced or realized through imaginative or sympathetic participation in the experience of another4: occurring in an unexpected or abnormal part of the body instead of the usual one <vicarious menstruation manifested by bleeding from the nose>

— vi·car·i·ous·ly adverb

— vi·car·i·ous·ness noun

Learn more about "vicarious" and related topics at Britannica.com

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