vicarious

adjective vi·car·i·ous \ vī-ˈker-ē-əs , və- \

Updated on: 7 May 2018

Definition of vicarious

1 : experienced or realized through imaginative or sympathetic participation in the experience of another

a vicarious thrill

2 a : serving instead of someone or something else

b : that has been delegated

vicarious authority

3 : performed or suffered by one person as a substitute for another or to the benefit or advantage of another : substitutionary

a vicarious sacrifice

4 : occurring in an unexpected or abnormal part of the body instead of the usual one

vicarious menstruation manifested by bleeding from the nose

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vicariously

adverb

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vicariousness

noun

See vicarious defined for English-language learners

See vicarious defined for kids

vicarious was our Word of the Day on 08/02/2010. Hear the podcast!

Examples of vicarious in a Sentence

I am a vicarious eater, often preferring a description of a meal to eating it. I hoard the Wednesday food section of the New York Times, savoring it as my late-night reading, finishing always with the restaurant review. —Anne-Marie Slaughter, Commonweal, 14 June 2002
Most people caged in the humdrum routines of modern life are eager for vicarious glimpses of pain, joy, and especially vitality. —Robert Jackall et al., Image Makers, 2000
There is an immense sub-middle class with enough money to preserve it from rancorous envy of the rich, but not enough to preserve it from boredom; it needs vicarious compensations and manages to find them in the gossip columns. —Aldous Huxley, The Olive Tree, 1937
To give himself the vicarious illusion of companionship, he fell back on letters. —Amy Lowell, John Keats, 1925
By means of ferocious jokes … he could vent his hatred of pioneer life and all its conditions, those conditions that were thwarting his creative life; he could, in this vicarious manner, appease the artist in him … —Van Wyck Brooks, The Ordeal of Mark Twain, 1920

Recent Examples of vicarious from the Web

As the Association of American Colleges and Universities has stressed repeatedly, liberal education matters to democracy — and not just as a preparation for vicarious and episodic citizenship, but also as democratic participation itself.

— valerie strauss, Washington Post, "Can liberal education survive at a scandal-plagued university? A professor explains why it must.," 1 May 2018
The core of the Frick experience is its domestic scale, the sense of vicarious privilege that comes with strolling around a family home bedecked with Holbeins and Titians.

— justin davidson, Daily Intelligencer, "This Time, a Much More Promising Attempt to Fix the Frick," 13 Apr. 2018
The exotic period setting harks back to the vicarious wanderlust of romantic suspense: Whitney set her novels in Santa Fe, Japan, and other picturesque locales.

— naomi fry, The New Yorker, "“Tangerine”: A Début Novel That Delights in Excess," 24 Mar. 2018
For some viewers the appeal was danger, a vicarious first-person peek into a part of Chicago’s South Side generally only seen through concern-trolling news clips.

— meaghan garvey, Billboard, "Fredo Santana's Honest Rhymes Fueled Chicago's Drill Movement and Influenced a Generation," 21 Jan. 2018
The other clips were ones meant to induce feelings of empathy, vicarious embarrassment and intense dislike.

— the washington post, NOLA.com, "This is your brain on reality TV: Science meets 'The Bachelor'," 15 Feb. 2018
Still, some Academy voters in need of encouragement in harrowing times—and in need of a booster shot of vicarious patriotism—may opt for one of those films.

— barry blitt, HWD, "How Do You Pick a Best Picture in Trump’s America?," 14 Dec. 2017
There's a bit of vicarious living going on there in the songs.

— tatiana tenreyro, Billboard, "'We've Come a Long Way': Alvvays Discuss Dreamy But Grounded New Album 'Antisocialites'," 6 Sep. 2017
Filed in September 2016, the original lawsuit asserted a straight copyright infringement claim as well as claims for contributory copyright infringement, vicarious copyright infringement and inducement of copyright infringement.

— marc schneider, Billboard, "Popular YouTube Stream Ripping Site to Shut Down," 5 Sep. 2017

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'vicarious.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

vicarious Has Latin Roots

If you act in someone’s stead, you take his or her place, at least temporarily. The oldest meaning of "vicarious," which was first recorded in 1637, is "serving in someone or something’s stead." The word vicarious derives from the Latin noun vicis, which means "change," "alternation," or "stead." "Vicis" is also the source of the English prefix vice- (as in "vice president"), meaning "one that takes the place of."

Origin and Etymology of vicarious

Latin vicarius, from vicis change, alternation, stead — more at week

NEW! Time Traveler

First Known Use: 1637

in the meaning defined at sense 2a

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VICARIOUS Defined for English Language Learners

vicarious

adjective

Definition of vicarious for English Language Learners

: experienced or felt by watching, hearing about, or reading about someone else rather than by doing something yourself

VICARIOUS Defined for Kids

vicarious

adjective vi·car·i·ous \ vī-ˈker-ē-əs \

Definition of vicarious for Students

: sharing in someone else's experiences through the use of imagination or sympathetic feelings

She got vicarious enjoyment from her sister's travels.

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vicariously

adverb

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vicariousness

noun

Medical Dictionary

vicarious

adjective vi·car·i·ous \ vī-ˈker-ē-əs, və-, -ˈkar- \

medical Definition of vicarious

: occurring in an unexpected or abnormal part of the body instead of the usual one

bleeding from the gums sometimes occurs in the absence of the normal discharge from the uterus in vicarious menstruation

Law Dictionary

vicarious

adjective vi·car·i·ous \ vī-ˈkar-ē-əs \

legal Definition of vicarious

: imposed on one person in place of another — see also vicarious liability at liability 2b

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vicariously

adverb

—

vicariousness

noun

Learn More about vicarious

See words that rhyme with vicarious Spanish Central: Translation of vicarious Nglish: Translation of vicarious for Spanish speakers Britannica English: Translation of vicarious for Arabic speakers

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vicarious

Definition of vicarious

vicariously

vicariousness

vicarious was our Word of the Day on 08/02/2010. Hear the podcast!

Examples of vicarious in a Sentence

Recent Examples of vicarious from the Web

vicarious Has Latin Roots

Origin and Etymology of vicarious

VICARIOUS Defined for English Language Learners

vicarious

Definition of vicarious for English Language Learners

VICARIOUS Defined for Kids

vicarious

Definition of vicarious for Students

vicariously

vicariousness

Medical Dictionary

vicarious

medical Definition of vicarious

Law Dictionary

vicarious

legal Definition of vicarious

vicariously

vicariousness

Learn More about vicarious

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