as in extrinsic
not being a vital part of or belonging to something
the point of view that art should be for art's sake and that moral considerations are adventitious to the study of art
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Recent Examples of adventitious
Although individual plants have a lifespan of 30-90 years, adventitious shoots grow up from roots.
—
Joshua Siskin, Oc Register, 5 July 2025
The patchy and adventitious quality of Jameson’s reconstruction must make clear his difference as a thinker.
—Mark Greif, Harper's Magazine, 26 July 2024
The cut appears to have been high enough that the stump should still have enough adventitious buds to regrow.
—Jonathan Edwards, Washington Post, 3 Oct. 2023
Plant Deep — Really Deep Tomatoes have the ability to produce roots off their stems, known as adventitious roots.
—Margaret Roach, New York Times, 12 May 2020
This can also occur when trees are planted too deep, as adventitious (growing sideways from the stem) roots grow against the stem and squeeze the sapwood.
—Rebecca Jepsen, The Mercury News, 28 Aug. 2019
Joshua Siskin, Oc Register, 5 July 2025
The patchy and adventitious quality of Jameson’s reconstruction must make clear his difference as a thinker.
—Mark Greif, Harper's Magazine, 26 July 2024
The cut appears to have been high enough that the stump should still have enough adventitious buds to regrow.
—Jonathan Edwards, Washington Post, 3 Oct. 2023
Plant Deep — Really Deep Tomatoes have the ability to produce roots off their stems, known as adventitious roots.
—Margaret Roach, New York Times, 12 May 2020
This can also occur when trees are planted too deep, as adventitious (growing sideways from the stem) roots grow against the stem and squeeze the sapwood.
—Rebecca Jepsen, The Mercury News, 28 Aug. 2019
Recent Examples of Synonyms for adventitious
Adjective
-
She was medically excused from the 2020 WNBA season held amid the COVID-19 pandemic due to extrinsic asthma, then returned to the league with the Washington Mystics in 2021.—
Emily Adams,
Hartford Courant,
7 May 2026
-
Anyone that wanted to reserve time in the July 19 final was beholden to a full-tourney pledge of as much as $30 million, although your mileage will vary based on any number of extrinsic variables.—
Anthony Crupi,
Sportico.com,
17 Apr. 2026
Adjective
-
That's nice, but also irrelevant if the debtor is not resident in one of those states (and maybe not even then).—
Jay Adkisson,
Forbes.com,
14 June 2026
-
No one wants to think about being replaced; no one wants to feel irrelevant in their own lives.—
R. Eric Thomas,
Chicago Tribune,
13 June 2026
Adjective
-
Emphasizing that self-worth comes from internal sources instead of external will also help kids deal with a myriad of confidence-bruising situations that may arise online, Hunt said.—
Sandra Gonzalez,
CNN Money,
19 June 2026
-
True opportunities arise from understanding external factors like stock ownership, investor mandates and changing incentives.—
Jim Osman,
Forbes.com,
19 June 2026
Adjective
-
In my case, just about all of it appeared to be extraneous documentation, like incorporation paperwork for Sackler’s firm, which seemed irrelevant to the matter at hand.—
Gary Baum,
HollywoodReporter,
12 June 2026
-
The length exacerbates all the rest of the series' sins, including a lack of emotional depth, gratuitous suffering and violence, long stretches of boring, listless plotting and extraneous characters.—
Kelly Lawler,
USA Today,
4 June 2026
Adjective
-
In a joint statement posted to Facebook on Tuesday, the Defiance County Sheriff's Office and the Defiance County Prosecutor's Office said the boy died in an accidental shooting on Saturday.—
Michael Guise,
CBS News,
17 June 2026
-
Lineage Logistics has previously been accused of failing to comply with safety regulations to prevent the accidental release of anhydrous ammonia.—
Clara Harter,
Los Angeles Times,
17 June 2026
Adjective
-
Studying these alien auroras helps researchers better understand planetary atmospheres and magnetic fields.—
Kaif Shaikh,
Interesting Engineering,
15 June 2026
-
There’s no conclusive evidence of alien life or government cover-ups.—
Collin Binkley,
Fortune,
15 June 2026
Adjective
-
South Florida Republican Congresswoman Maria Elvira Salazar is expressing skepticism over the Cuban government's announcement of sweeping economic reforms that would open key sectors of the island's economy to private and foreign investment.—
Ivan Taylor,
CBS News,
20 June 2026
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Paramount has petitioned the FCC to sign off on the foreign investment, as any foreign ownership stake above 25% requires agency approval.—
Ted Johnson,
Deadline,
19 June 2026
Cite this Entry
“Adventitious.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/adventitious. Accessed 22 Jun. 2026.
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