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View synonyms for gratuitous

gratuitous

[ gruh-too-i-tuhs, -tyoo- ]

adjective

  1. being without apparent reason, cause, or justification:

    It looks to me like a baseless and gratuitous insult—like you have a huge chip on your shoulder.

    Synonyms: gratis, groundless, unreasonable, redundant, superfluous, unnecessary

  2. given, done, bestowed, or obtained without charge or payment; free; complimentary.
  3. Law. given without receiving any return value.


gratuitous

/ ɡrəˈtjuːɪtəs /

adjective

  1. given or received without payment or obligation
  2. without cause; unjustified
  3. law given or made without receiving any value in return

    a gratuitous agreement

“Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged” 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012


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Derived Forms

  • graˈtuitousness, noun
  • graˈtuitously, adverb
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Other Words From

  • gra·tu·i·tous·ly adverb
  • gra·tu·i·tous·ness noun
  • non·gra·tu·i·tous adjective
  • non·gra·tu·i·tous·ness noun
  • un·gra·tu·i·tous adjective
  • un·gra·tu·i·tous·ness noun
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Word History and Origins

Origin of gratuitous1

First recorded in 1650–60; from Latin grātuītus “free, freely given, spontaneous,” derivative of grātus “thankful, received with thanks” (for formation fortuitous ); -ous
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Word History and Origins

Origin of gratuitous1

C17: from Latin grātuītus, from grātia favour
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Example Sentences

It also declares that the amendment would “repeal constitutional protections against gerrymandering approved by nearly three-quarters of Ohio electors participating in the statewide elections of 2015 and 2018,” a gratuitous reference to the failed reforms of the previous decade.

From Slate

That press conference came in the shadow of the Hur report, in which the special counsel made a gratuitous comment about Biden being an elderly man with a bad memory.

From Salon

The GOP, already the party of sexism, is getting more gratuitous with its toxic masculinity.

From Salon

The GOP, already the party of sexism, is getting more gratuitous with its toxic masculinity.

From Salon

As to the sex and the violence, yes, we’ve seen the frescoes and mosaics and know the Romans had inventive erotic lives, but on streaming television, these scenes, which arrive with regularity, come across as tediously gratuitous.

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grattoirgratuitous contract