4.3 • 1.2K Ratings
🗓️ 25 October 2023
⏱️ 2 minutes
🧾️ Download transcript
Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for October 25, 2023 is:
extraneous • \ek-STRAY-nee-us\ • adjective
Something described as extraneous does not form a necessary part of something else, and may also therefore be considered irrelevant or unimportant (as in “extraneous details”).
// The woman who reported the robbery kept bringing up extraneous facts, such as what she'd had for lunch.
Examples:
“Free of frippery and extraneous decorative details, the roughly 4,500-square-foot loft is a pure expression of the bold geometries, expert craftsmanship, and premium materials for which Gwathmey is renowned.” — Mark David, Robb Report, 22 Aug. 2023
Did you know?
We’d hate to be extra, so we won’t weigh you down with a lot of extraneous information about the word extraneous. Instead, we’ll tell you that it has been a part of the English language since at least the mid-1600s, and that it comes from the Latin word extrāneus, which means “not belonging to one’s family or household; external.” Extrāneus—a combination of the Latin adverb/preposition extrā (“outside” or “beyond”) and adjective suffix -āneus—is also the root of the English words strange and estrange; its influence is even more obvious in the Spanish adjective extraño, meaning “strange.” The “outside/beyond” senses of extrā are also evident in non-extraneous English words like extraterrestrial, which refers to a creature originating from “outside” planet Earth, and extrajudicial, which describes something “beyond” what is allowed by a court.
Click on a timestamp to play from that location
0:00.0 | It's Merriam Webster's Word of the Day for October 25th. |
0:11.3 | Today's word is extraneous, spelled E-X-T-R-A-N-E-O-U-S. |
0:19.2 | Extraneous is an adjective. |
0:21.2 | Something described as extraneous does not form a necessary part of something else, and |
0:27.0 | it may also therefore be considered irrelevant or unimportant, as in extraneous details. |
0:32.8 | Here's the word used in a sentence from the Rob Report by Mark David. |
0:38.9 | Free of fripory and extraneous decorative details, the roughly 4,500 square foot loft is |
0:45.9 | a pure expression of the bold geometries, expert craftsmanship, and premium materials for |
0:53.2 | which guathme is renowned. |
0:56.6 | We'd hate to be extra, so we won't weigh you down with a lot of extraneous information |
1:01.7 | about the word extraneous. |
1:04.1 | Instead we'll tell you that it has been a part of the English language since at least |
1:08.6 | the mid-1600s, and that it comes from the Latin word extra-neus, which means not belonging |
1:15.5 | to one's family or household, external. |
1:19.4 | Extra-neus, a combination of the Latin adverb and preposition extra, meaning outside or |
1:24.7 | beyond, and the adjective suffix and use, is also the root of the English words strange |
1:31.3 | and estranged. |
1:33.1 | Its influence is even more obvious in the Spanish adjective extra-neil, meaning strange. |
1:39.8 | The outside, beyond senses of extra, are also evident in non-extraneous English words |
1:46.4 | like extra-terrestrial, which refers to a creature originating from outside planet Earth, and |
1:53.4 | extra judicial, which describes something beyond what is allowed by a court. |
1:58.8 | With your word of the day, I'm Peter Sarkalowski. |
... |
Please login to see the full transcript.
Disclaimer: The podcast and artwork embedded on this page are from Merriam-Webster, and are the property of its owner and not affiliated with or endorsed by Tapesearch.
Generated transcripts are the property of Merriam-Webster and are distributed freely under the Fair Use doctrine. Transcripts generated by Tapesearch are not guaranteed to be accurate.
Copyright © Tapesearch 2025.