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Added 9 October 2026

supernumerary

/ˌsuːpəˈnjuːm(ə)ɹ(ə)ɹi/ noun

In Latin: supernumerarius Wiktionary

noun Definition from WordNet 3.1, Princeton University. Pronunciation from Wiktionary, via Kaikki.org. More about supernumerary at Wordnik → Where our words come from →

A person serving no apparent function.
reducing staff is difficult because our employees include no supernumeraries
A minor actor in crowd scenes.

adjective

More than is needed, desired, or required.
trying to lose excess weight

Origin

From Late Latin supernumerarius (“extra soldier added to a legion; supernumerary”), from super (“above; beyond”) + numerus (“number; collection, quantity”) + -ārius (suffix forming adjectives from nouns or numerals). The word is analysable as super- + numeral + -ary.

From Wiktionary, via Kaikki.org (CC BY-SA)

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