redundancy

noun

re·​dun·​dan·​cy ri-ˈdən-dən(t)-sē 

plural redundancies

1

a

: the quality or state of being redundant : superfluity

b

: the use of redundant components

also : such components

c

chiefly British : dismissal from a job especially by layoff

2

: profusion, abundance

3

a

: superfluous repetition : prolixity

b

: an act or instance of needless repetition

4

: the part of a message that can be eliminated without loss of essential information

Did you know?

Redundancy, closely related to redound, has stayed close to the original meaning of "overflow" or "more than necessary". Avoiding redundancy is one of the prime rules of good writing. ""In the modern world of today" contains a redundancy; so does "He died of fatal wounds" and "For the mutual benefit of both parties". But redundancy doesn't just occur in language. "Data redundancy" means keeping the same computer data in more than one place as a safety measure, and a backup system in an airplane may provide redundancy, again for the sake of safety.

Synonyms of redundancy

• repetition
• repetitiveness
• verbosity
• wordiness
• prolixity
• diffusion
• diffuseness
• wordage
• logorrhea
• circumlocution

Examples of redundancy in a Sentence

Avoid redundancy in your writing.

Try to avoid using redundancies in your writing.

The design incorporates several redundancies.

a system with a high level of redundancy

The restructuring is expected to result in the redundancy of several hundred workers.

The workers are now facing redundancy.

Recent Examples on the Web

Despite all the preparations, safety systems and redundancies, the nature of human spaceflight is inherently risky, some experts told ABC News. —Briana Alvarado, ABC News, 1 Apr. 2026

The design uses hydrogen as the primary fuel with a small amount of heavy fuel oil as pilot ignition, a configuration chosen for redundancy in early commercial applications. —Chris Young, Interesting Engineering, 31 Mar. 2026

The result is a force built on redundancy, asymmetry and endurance. —Efrat Lachter, FOXNews.com, 28 Mar. 2026

This long-term view helps APR production experts spot redundancies, such as two teams planning to shoot similar content, and find opportunities to combine efforts, potentially saving time and money. —Jason Phillips, USA Today, 27 Mar. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

1601, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Kids Definition

redundancy

noun

re·​dun·​dan·​cy ri-ˈdən-dən-sē 

plural redundancies

1

: the quality or state of being redundant

2

a

: the use of unnecessary words

b

: an act or instance of needless repetition