supernumerary

adjective su·per·nu·mer·ary \ ˌsü-pər-ˈnü-mə-ˌrer-ē , -ˈnyü- , -mə-rē ; -ˈn(y)üm-rē \

Definition of supernumerary

1 a : exceeding the usual, stated, or prescribed number

a supernumerary tooth

b : not enumerated among the regular components of a group and especially of a military organization

2 : exceeding what is necessary, required, or desired

3 : more numerous

See supernumerary defined for kids

Examples of supernumerary in a Sentence

a third, supernumerary witness to the signing of the will

Did You Know?

Supernumerary starts off with the Latin prefix super-, "above". You may have heard of someone being born with supernumerary teeth, supernumerary fingers, or supernumerary toes. A supernumerary rainbow may show up as a faint line—red, green, or purple—just touching the main colored arc. Supernumerary is also a noun: A supernumerary is usually someone in a crowd scene onstage, otherwise known as an "extra" or a "spear-carrier".

Origin and Etymology of supernumerary

Late Latin supernumerarius, from Latin super- + numerus number

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First Known Use: 1605

See Words from the same year

supernumerary Synonyms

Synonyms

excess, extra, redundant, supererogatory, superfluous, spare, surplus

Related Words

accessory, additional, supplemental, supplementary; de trop, dispensable, extraneous, gratuitous, needless, nonessential, uncalled-for, unessential, unnecessary, unneeded, unwanted; abundant, ample, bountiful, copious, plenteous, plentiful

Near Antonyms

deficient, inadequate, insufficient, meager (or meagre), niggardly, poor, scant, scanty, scarce, short, shortish, skimpy, sparse

Other Military Terms

bivouac, logistics, petard, salient, sally, tactical

supernumerary

noun

Definition of supernumerary

plural supernumeraries

1 : a supernumerary person or thing

2 : an actor employed to play a walk-on

Recent Examples of supernumerary from the Web

History will be merciless to them, but how much fun to watch them reduced to thunderstruck supernumeraries in real time.

— frank rich, Daily Intelligencer, "Frank Rich: Donald Trump’s ‘Independence’ Is a Complete Farce," 13 Sep. 2017

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