unnecessarily

adverb

un·​nec·​es·​sar·​i·​ly ˌən-ˌne-sə-ˈser-ə-lē 

: not by necessity : to an unnecessary degree

unnecessarily harsh criticism

Examples of unnecessarily in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Videos of the incident where Good is seen in her maroon Honda SUV as ICE agents confronted her have gone viral and sparked outcry from people around the country who say that Good was unnecessarily killed. —ABC News, 8 Jan. 2026

But local officials and law enforcement expressed concern over the incident, warning federal officials that the deployment had unnecessarily increased tensions within the community, and expressing support for the rights of residents to peacefully protest. —Los Angeles Times, 8 Jan. 2026

Healthy and balanced meal plans are high in nutritious foods and aren’t unnecessarily restrictive. —Jillian Kubala, Health, 6 Jan. 2026

And the lower immunization rates, even a little, will cause children to suffer unnecessarily. —Katherine J. Wu, The Atlantic, 6 Jan. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

1565, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for unnecessarily

• extraordinarily
• hereditarily
• pecuniarily
• preliminarily
• airily
• caroli
• merrily
• verily
• warily
• wearily
• arbitrarily
• customarily

Kids Definition

unnecessarily

adverb

un·​nec·​es·​sar·​i·​ly ˌən-ˌnes-ə-ˈser-ə-lē 

1

: not by necessity

spent money unnecessarily

2

: to an unnecessary degree

an unnecessarily harsh punishment