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superfluousness

superfluousness

8.4
Being more than what is needed
  • noun
  • /suːˈpɜrfluəsnəs/
translation icon : superfluidad
  • The report was criticized for its superfluousness, as it included information that was not relevant to the main topic.

Examples

  • Marginalization is a condition resulting from prolonged functional superfluousness.

    Academic text (1999)
  • What is the point of examining superfluousness when the urgent is in our faces, constantly?

    Blog text (26)
  • Nationalism has been key to that drama, along with other modern keys, to be sure, as both a cause and an effect of the superfluousness of peoples across the globe.

    Academic text (1999)
  • For her, "their very superfluousness, their separation from both state and society" explains why the catastrophes of twentieth-century Europe began with the catastrophe of the Jews (42).

    Academic text (1999)
  • Many students struggle to avoid superfluousness in their essays by including unnecessary details.

  • The designer aimed to eliminate the superfluousness from the product's features, focusing only on what was essential.

Synonyms

overkill
vssuperfluousness
  • Informal
40 5.4

Using more than you need so it is unnecessary

denotes the overall state of being unnecessary without implied excess of force
fluff
vssuperfluousness
  • Literature
16 3.5

Unimportant words in writing or speech

covers the wider quality of being unnecessary or surplus content
irrelevance
vssuperfluousness
10 5.3

Something not related to the main topic

is about being needless or more than required regardless of relation
redundancy
vssuperfluousness
8 5.2

Unnecessary repetition that makes speech or writing longer

is the broader quality of being superfluous beyond necessity
insignificance
vssuperfluousness
7 5.8

A state of not being important or having little effect

concerns instead the presence of extra, unnecessary elements beyond need
overabundance
vssuperfluousness
7 5.7

Too much of something that is not needed

is the abstract quality of being more than necessary rather than mere amount
triviality
vssuperfluousness
6 5.4

A small detail that does not matter

covers the larger notion of being unnecessary or surplus in quantity
pointlessness
vssuperfluousness
2 6.2

A state when something has no purpose or use

focuses instead on being unnecessary because it exceeds what is needed
superabundance
vssuperfluousness
1 7.9

A very large amount of something that is more than needed

is the general idea of needless excess rather than a concrete large amount
unimportance
vssuperfluousness
1 4.6

A situation or thing that is not worth much attention

highlights instead the idea of being unnecessary or extra in amount
superfluity
vssuperfluousness
1 8.7

An amount that is more than needed or useful

is the general quality of being more than necessary
inessential
vssuperfluousness
1 5.5

A thing you do not need and can leave behind

describes the general quality of being unnecessary or extra
needlessness
vssuperfluousness
6.2

A situation where something is not needed

names the broader quality of being unnecessary or excessive
dispensableness
vssuperfluousness
9.9

The fact that something is not needed

focuses on the overall condition of being unnecessary or surplus
inessentiality
vssuperfluousness
9.6

A state in which something is not necessary

is the wider idea of being more than what is needed
unnecessity
vssuperfluousness
8.4

A thing or situation that is not needed

captures the abstract state of being needless or excessive
redundance
vssuperfluousness
  • Archaic
7.8

A situation with extra parts or ideas that are not needed

expresses the general condition of being more than needed
gratuitousness
vssuperfluousness
8.9

A quality of being unnecessary and without good reason

is the neutral quality of being unnecessary without judged motive
immateriality
vssuperfluousness
9.7

Not important to the subject or discussion

focuses instead on being needless or present in excess of need
extraneousness
vssuperfluousness
9.9

The fact of not being related or important to the main point

refers more generally to being unnecessary because of excess rather than relation
slightness
vssuperfluousness
6.6

A small matter that people think is unimportant and easy to ignore

refers more to being unnecessary or excessive rather than merely small
negligibility
vssuperfluousness
8.6

So small or unimportant that it does not matter

is the broader condition of being needless or present in excess

Antonyms

1.0

Something a person must have to live or be healthy

274 2.0

A thing you need to live, like food or water

How much something is needed

How Unnecessary

redundancy
8 5.2
superfluousness
8.4
to glut
7.0
superfluity
1 8.7
surplus
192 3.1

Surface Forms

Morphology

superfluousness = superfluous (transparent) = superfluous + ness

Standard noun formation from the adjective 'superfluous' with the suffix '-ness' yields the quality/state meaning directly.

Etymology

Superfluousness comes from the Latin parts super- 'over' and fluere 'to flow', the same root you see in fluid and fluent, so it gives the idea of 'overflowing'. Think of a cup that keeps overflowing — superfluousness is the extra, unnecessary things that flow beyond what you need.