Inessential

2 definitions found

From The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48 [gcide]:

  Inessential \In`es*sen"tial\, a. [Pref. in- not + essential: cf.
     F. inessentiel.]
     [1913 Webster]
     1. Having no essence or being. --H. Brooke.
        [1913 Webster]
  


              The womb of inessential Naught.       --Shelley.
        [1913 Webster]
  
     2. Not essential; not required to achieve a given purpose;
        unessential; unnecessary.
        [1913 Webster +PJC]

From WordNet (r) 2.0 [wn]:

  inessential
       adj 1: not basic or fundamental [syn: {unessential}] [ant: {essential}]
       2: not absolutely necessary
       n : anything that is not essential; "they discarded all their
           inessentials" [syn: {nonessential}] [ant: {necessity}]