as in unnecessary
not needed by the circumstances or to accomplish an end
he writes very spare prose, with nary an inessential word to be found
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Recent Examples of inessential
That kind of wheel-spinning can be infuriating in a genre show; think of how the second season of Yellowjackets eventually became too unwieldy or how certain episodes of Lost (one of From’s clear inspirations) felt inessential.
—
Roxana Hadadi, Vulture, 24 Nov. 2024
The season ended, the credits rolled, and I was tossed into the abyss of inessential programming.
—Evan Waite, The New Yorker, 8 Oct. 2024
When photography went digital, photo lab technicians and manual retouchers were suddenly as inessential as medieval scribes.
—Steven Kurutz, New York Times, 28 Mar. 2025
The remaining seven undisputed songs, including forgettable Akon and Lenny Kravitz collaborations, make for a slight and inessential collection.
—Al Shipley, SPIN, 16 Jan. 2025
See All Example Sentences for inessential
Roxana Hadadi, Vulture, 24 Nov. 2024
The season ended, the credits rolled, and I was tossed into the abyss of inessential programming.
—Evan Waite, The New Yorker, 8 Oct. 2024
When photography went digital, photo lab technicians and manual retouchers were suddenly as inessential as medieval scribes.
—Steven Kurutz, New York Times, 28 Mar. 2025
The remaining seven undisputed songs, including forgettable Akon and Lenny Kravitz collaborations, make for a slight and inessential collection.
—Al Shipley, SPIN, 16 Jan. 2025
See All Example Sentences for inessential
Recent Examples of Synonyms for inessential
unnecessary
Adjective
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And unlike species that evolved to shed unnecessary traits, the Greenland shark has kept its ability to see intact, even if it is modified for its shadowy world.—
Melissa Cristina Márquez,
Forbes.com,
14 May 2025
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By adjusting power consumption dynamically, the tool could help reduce unnecessary background activity and extend battery life—especially during idle periods or when apps are not in active use.—
Tahar Rajab,
MSNBC Newsweek,
14 May 2025
Cite this Entry
“Inessential.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/inessential. Accessed 20 May. 2025.
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