Definition of Extraneous

1. Adjective. Not pertinent to the matter under consideration. "Mentioned several impertinent facts before finally coming to the point"

Exact synonyms: Immaterial, Impertinent, Orthogonal
Similar to: Irrelevant
Derivative terms: Extraneousness, Immateriality

2. Adjective. Not essential. "The ballet struck me as extraneous and somewhat out of keeping with the rest of the play"
Similar to: Extrinsic
Derivative terms: Extraneousness

3. Adjective. Not belonging to that in which it is contained; introduced from an outside source. "Foreign particles in milk"
Exact synonyms: Foreign
Similar to: Adulterant, Adulterating
Derivative terms: Extraneousness

4. Adjective. Coming from the outside. "Disdaining outside pressure groups"
Exact synonyms: External, Outside
Similar to: Extrinsic
Derivative terms: Externality, Extraneousness

Definition of Extraneous

1. a. Not belonging to, or dependent upon, a thing; without or beyond a thing; not essential or intrinsic; foreign; as, to separate gold from extraneous matter.

Definition of Extraneous

1. Adjective. Not belonging to, or dependent upon, a thing; without or beyond a thing; foreign ¹

2. Adjective. Not essential or intrinsic ¹

¹ Source: wiktionary.com

Definition of Extraneous

1. [adj]

Medical Definition of Extraneous

1. Outside of the organism and not belonging to it. Origin: L. Extraneus (05 Mar 2000)

Lexicographical Neighbors of Extraneous

extramatrical
extramedullary
extramembranous
extramembranous pregnancy
extrametric
extramission
extramissions
extramitochondrial
extramundane
extramural
extramural practice
extramurally
extramusical
extraneity
extraneous
extraneous variable
extraneously
extraneousness
extraness
extranet
extranets
extranodal
extranoematic
extranuclear
extranuclear inheritance
extranucleolar
extraocular
extraocular muscles
extraofficial

Literary usage of Extraneous

Below you will find example usage of this term as found in modern and/or classical literature:

1. Essay on the Theory of the Earth by Georges Cuvier, Robert Jameson, Samuel Latham Mitchill (1818)
"Of the Importance of Extraneous Fossils, or Petrifactions, in Geology. The importance of investigating the relations of extraneous fossils with the strata ..."

2. Proceedings of the Cambridge Philosophical Society by Cambridge Philosophical Society (1908)
"Note on the influence of extraneous forces upon the proportion of the sexes produced by Canaries. By WALTER HEAPE, MA, FRS, Trinity College, Cambridge. ..."

3. Statutes and Statutory Construction: Including a Discussion of Legislative by Jabez Gridley Sutherland (1904)
"Extraneous facts in aid of ... in availing itself of all legitimate aids to ascertain the true intention; and among them are some extraneous facts. ..."

4. The Material Used in Musical Composition: A System of Harmony Designed by Percy Goetschius (1913)
"A modulation is extraneous when it extends past the next-related keys; or, in other words, into a key whose signature differs by more than one accidental ..."

5. The diplomatic protection of citizens abroad or the law of international claims by Edwin Montefiore Borchard (1915)
"Censurable Conduct Extraneous to Injury or Claim. Censurable conduct extraneous to the particular act out of which the claim arose has sometimes induced the ..."

6. Institutes of the Christian Religion by Jean Calvin (1844)
"instituted by God, would shine with the greatest lustre, unencumbered with any extraneous corruptions. But whether the person who is baptized be wholly ..."

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