Meaning & use
supererogatory
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Meanings
adjectivecomparableformaltechnical
Good to do but going beyond what duty or rules require, so that no one can blame you for not doing it.
Grammar: Used in ethics before a noun or after be: a supererogatory act, the gift was supererogatory.
Patterns
- a supererogatory act
- be supererogatory
Philosophers call it supererogatory when someone gives a kidney to a stranger, because no one is obliged to do so.
Staying late to help a colleague was kind but supererogatory.
Her volunteering was supererogatory, since the job description never required it.
adjectivecomparableformalrare
Unnecessary or more than is needed, so that it adds nothing useful.
Grammar: A rarer, sometimes critical use meaning superfluous: a supererogatory explanation.
Patterns
- supererogatory details
The report included supererogatory footnotes that nobody read.
He added a supererogatory apology after he had already been forgiven.
Common combinations
- a supererogatory act
- Rescuing the stranger was a supererogatory act, not a duty.
- supererogatory duty
- Some thinkers say charity is a supererogatory duty.
- morally supererogatory
- Giving away half your income is often seen as morally supererogatory.
- a supererogatory gesture
- The extra payment was a supererogatory gesture of thanks.
- strictly supererogatory
- The extra training is strictly supererogatory, though welcome.
Synonyms and how they differ
- optional
- Optional only says you may choose not to do it, while supererogatory also says that doing it is admirable.
- superfluous
- Superfluous means more than needed and often useless, whereas supererogatory acts are good to perform.
- above and beyond
- This everyday phrase describes the same extra effort, but supererogatory is the technical word used in philosophy.
- gratuitous
- Gratuitous usually means unnecessary and unwelcome, not praiseworthy, unlike supererogatory.
Opposites
Word family
- supererogation noun
- the doing of more than duty requires
- supererogate verb
- to do more than is required (rare)
Commonly confused: supererogatory or superfluous?
supererogatory vs superfluous
Superfluous means unneeded and often wasteful, but supererogatory usually means beyond duty and creditable.
Practice
A philosopher says an act is supererogatory when it is ____.
Choose one answer.
A supererogatory act is admirable yet goes beyond duty. A required or forbidden act is not supererogatory, and worthless does not mean praiseworthy.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “supererogatory”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.