superfluity

[ soo-per-floo-i-tee ]

noun

, plural su·per·flu·i·ties.

1. the state of being superfluous.
2. a superabundant or excessive amount.
3. something superfluous, as a luxury.

superfluity

/ ˌsuːpəˈfluːɪtɪ /

noun

1. the condition of being superfluous
2. a quantity or thing that is in excess of what is needed
3. a thing that is not needed

Word History and Origins

Origin of superfluity¹

1350–1400; Middle English superfluite < Old French < Latin superfluitās. See superfluous, -ity

Word History and Origins

Origin of superfluity¹

C14: from Old French superfluité, via Late Latin from Latin superfluus superfluous

Example Sentences

But, a little paradoxically, the collection is most valuable when it’s proving its own superfluity: The best material is what made it onto the completed record.

From New York Times

A group of crows is a murder; pandas, an embarrassment; nuns, a superfluity — a term that dates to the Middle Ages, when nunneries were overcrowded, lice-ridden and destitute.

From New York Times

The sequel serves up plenty for specialists to chew on, not least a Jack Nicholson look-alike—insofar as that’s possible—behind the hotel bar, yet these semi-reconstructions betray an odd sense of superfluity and strain.

From The New Yorker

Claims of necessity or superfluity imply some end goal, but it’s rare to see one explicitly stated.

From The Guardian

Under low light, these faded, wispy clippings from the cutting-room floor suggest a superfluity of ideas that might have supplied a lifetime of inspiration to other artists.

From Washington Post