as in extra
not needed by the circumstances or to accomplish an end
that large suitcase is unnecessary—we are only going to be away for a couple of days
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
Read More
Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of unnecessary
Research has found that habitual, unnecessary apologizing can erode how others perceive your competence and confidence.
—
Erin McGoff, CNBC, 16 Feb. 2026
Not a single line of dialogue feels unnecessary, or a subplot tangential.
—Bilge Ebiri, Vulture, 16 Feb. 2026
That case also crashed and burned in court and has been seen by critics as another example of an unnecessary prosecution that hurts the DOJ’s accountability image.
—Kaelan Deese, The Washington Examiner, 15 Feb. 2026
Santana also agrees Lula is facing unnecessary legal risks.
—ABC News, 15 Feb. 2026
See All Example Sentences for unnecessary
Erin McGoff, CNBC, 16 Feb. 2026
Not a single line of dialogue feels unnecessary, or a subplot tangential.
—Bilge Ebiri, Vulture, 16 Feb. 2026
That case also crashed and burned in court and has been seen by critics as another example of an unnecessary prosecution that hurts the DOJ’s accountability image.
—Kaelan Deese, The Washington Examiner, 15 Feb. 2026
Santana also agrees Lula is facing unnecessary legal risks.
—ABC News, 15 Feb. 2026
See All Example Sentences for unnecessary
Recent Examples of Synonyms for unnecessary
Adjective
-
That staunch support takes on extra significance in a hyper-competitive country that often only rewards top winners and punishes those who fall short.—
Jessie Yeung,
CNN Money,
19 Feb. 2026
-
If Boise State and SDSU both make it, that’s an extra $4 million minimum for the Mountain West.—
Mark Zeigler,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
19 Feb. 2026
Adjective
-
Many cameras offer optional subscription services for cloud storage and advanced AI features.—
Trisha Easto,
USA Today,
16 Feb. 2026
-
Insecticide This method usually follows the heat treatment method and is optional.—
Rae Ford,
Martha Stewart,
16 Feb. 2026
Adjective
-
On the contrary, they were largely fuelled by moral outrage at the needless suffering religion caused.—
Christopher Beha,
New Yorker,
14 Feb. 2026
-
In his account, an international order run by a single power would hinder Russia and produce needless conflict, especially when that power was as self-serving and duplicitous as America.—
Alan Cullison,
The Atlantic,
13 Feb. 2026
Adjective
-
That's almost irrelevant, though, LaFrance adds.—
Angela Haupt,
Time,
13 Feb. 2026
-
An education is practically irrelevant.—
Letters to the Editor,
The Orlando Sentinel,
13 Feb. 2026
Adjective
-
The agency urges Americans to limit nonessential travel to Haiti due to the ongoing violence.—
Kathleen Wong,
USA Today,
19 Feb. 2026
-
If someone drastically limits caloric intake or routinely goes 24 hours without eating, the body shifts energy toward essential biological processes and away from nonessential ones, Rossi says.—
Tom Gavin,
EverydayHealth.com,
17 Feb. 2026
Adjective
-
In each of the commercials, ordinary people seeking advice from an artificially-sounding person standing in for the AI chatbot were interrupted by unwarranted advertisements.—
Marco Quiroz-Gutierrez,
Fortune,
19 Feb. 2026
-
Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche fired back at Massie's claims of unwarranted redactions.—
John Parkinson,
ABC News,
10 Feb. 2026
Adjective
-
The bill seeks to speed up federal assistance by reducing redundant paperwork and creating a faster payment system for small disasters.—
Lauren Sommer,
NPR,
17 Feb. 2026
-
Bad software architecture forces unnecessary data transfers, redundant computations, and excessive resource use.—
Arjun Sharma,
IEEE Spectrum,
17 Feb. 2026
Adjective
-
In any case, in the first heat of their serious adventures with men, female friends seemed dispensable.—
Tessa Hadley,
New Yorker,
25 Jan. 2026
-
Takeoff is booster assisted, and landing is achieved with parachutes combined with dispensable airbags.—
Prabhat Ranjan Mishra,
Interesting Engineering,
23 Nov. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Unnecessary.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/unnecessary. Accessed 24 Feb. 2026.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
