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Definition of "otiose" []

  • Lazy; indolent. (adjective)
  • Of no use. (adjective)
  • Ineffective; futile. See Synonyms at vain. (adjective)

American Heritage(R) Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright (c) 2011 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

Use "otiose" in a sentence
  • "I'm sorry to be such a scrotum, but did you mean to type "otiose" or "obtuse"?"
  • "Still, I pack too much, a huge duffle crammed with triple and quadruple of everything: shirts, shorts, footwear, rainwear, and all sorts of otiose extras I know I will never use."
  • "Instead the Tories plan to ring-fence NHS spending, thus keeping hordes of adminstrators who are otherwise otiose beavering away at nothing very much."