Appearance
Use device theme  
Dark theme
Light theme

What is the opposite of essential?

Need antonyms for essential? Here's a list of opposite words from our thesaurus that you can use instead.

Adjective
(inessential) Opposite of necessary or very important
more ❯
“The game contains many inessential, though fun, side missions for you to complete in between the main storyline.”
Adjective
(detrimental) Opposite of necessary or very important
“The consumption of highly processed foods is considered to be detrimental to one's health.”
Adjective
(secondary) Opposite of fundamental, inherent or central in nature
“Hickey theorized that humans have an underlying primary nature, as well as an opposing secondary nature.”
Adjective
(foreign) Opposite of fundamental, inherent or central in nature
“My eyes have seen these acts so foreign to human nature that now I tremble as I write.”
Adjective
Opposite of being in the most pure form
“I actually don't take tea, I take coffee, my dear. I'm an atypical Englishman in New York.”
Adjective
Opposite of being in the basic, or simplest, form
“You will need an advanced understanding of programming concepts to work on this complex task.”
Adjective
Opposite of having from birth (or as if from birth) a certain quality or character
Adjective
Opposite of of the most basic kind, especially on a fundamental level
Adjective
Opposite of naturally as part or consequence of something
“He castigates prize judges for giving the top awards to books for reasons extrinsic to literature.”
Adjective
Opposite of existing in reality or as a matter of fact
“The premise that this was built by aliens is highly conjectural!”
Adjective
Opposite of almost or nearly as described, but not completely or according to strict definition
Adjective
Opposite of relating to the character of an early stage in the evolutionary or historical development of something
Adjective
Opposite of being the only one of its kind, typically unique or special in some respect
“The artist used several generic techniques to create a highly typical painting.”
Adjective
Opposite of at the core or in its most fundamental nature
“The recent discipline of bioethics has developed principles of its own independent of medicine.”
Adjective
Opposite of so nearly the case that it can be regarded as so
“Please be aware of what you need to do in the unlikely event of an emergency.”
Adjective
Opposite of existing as fact without formal acknowledgment
“It was a hypothetical scenario and a figment of her imagination.”
Adjective
Opposite of cut or shortened, especially of a literary work
Adjective
Opposite of earliest in time or order
“This will be the next, and last, race that you will run, so make it count!”
Noun
(nonessential) Opposite of a necessary component
“I would consider a jacket to be a nonessential when traveling to a hot, tropical destination.”
Noun
(amenity) Opposite of a necessary component
“The hotel provides bathrobes as an amenity for guests.”
Noun
(detriment) Opposite of a necessary component
“Many people are now wondering if social media is actually a detriment to society.”
Noun
(usually used in plural form "essentials") Opposite of a fundamental element or characteristic
“Frankly, I find the minutia of everyday life much more interesting than the glaring important life-changing events that shape our lives.”
Noun
Opposite of an urgent need or demand (for something)
Noun
Opposite of a necessary or essential item for a given task
“As long as the supply of methionine is adequate, cysteine is considered as a nonessential.”
Noun
Opposite of something that must be done or adhered to based on need or urgency
“Determinations that conduct was or was not willed in the appropriate sense invariably turn out to be based on judgments as to the voluntariness of the conduct.”
Noun
Opposite of an essential or characteristic part of something
Find more words!
Use * for blank tiles (max 2) Advanced Search Advanced Search
Use * for blank spaces Advanced Search
Advanced Word Finder

See Also

Nearby Words
9-letter Words Starting With
Find Antonyms
go
Word Tools Finders & Helpers Apps More Synonyms
Copyright WordHippo © 2024