adventitious

adjective

ad·​ven·​ti·​tious ˌad-(ˌ)ven-ˈti-shəs How to pronounce adventitious (audio)
-vən-
1
: coming from another source and not inherent or innate
a Federal house without adventitious later additions
adventitious influences
2
: arising or occurring sporadically or in other than the usual location
adventitious roots
adventitiously adverb

Did you know?

Adventitious comes from Latin adventīcius, meaning "coming from outside," which, in turn, is from advenīre, "to arrive." The verb is the source of other English words, including advent, adventure, and avenue.

Examples of adventitious in a Sentence

the point of view that art should be for art's sake and that moral considerations are adventitious to the study of art
Recent Examples on the Web The cut appears to have been high enough that the stump should still have enough adventitious buds to regrow. Jonathan Edwards, Washington Post, 3 Oct. 2023 Plant Deep — Really Deep Tomatoes have the ability to produce roots off their stems, known as adventitious roots. Margaret Roach, New York Times, 12 May 2020 This can also occur when trees are planted too deep, as adventitious (growing sideways from the stem) roots grow against the stem and squeeze the sapwood. Rebecca Jepsen, The Mercury News, 28 Aug. 2019

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'adventitious.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

Etymology

borrowed from Latin adventīcius "coming from outside, external, foreign," from adventus, past participle of advenīre "to arrive, approach" + -īcius -itious — more at advent

First Known Use

1603, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of adventitious was in 1603

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Dictionary Entries Near adventitious

Cite this Entry

“Adventitious.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/adventitious. Accessed 19 Mar. 2024.

Kids Definition

adventitious

adjective
ad·​ven·​ti·​tious ˌad-(ˌ)ven-ˈtish-əs How to pronounce adventitious (audio)
-vən-
1
: coming from an outside source and not an essential part : accidental
2
: appearing in other than the usual or normal place
adventitious roots
adventitiously adverb

Medical Definition

adventitious

adjective
ad·​ven·​ti·​tious -əs How to pronounce adventitious (audio)
1
a
: arising sporadically or in other than the usual location
an adventitious part in embryonic development
b
: occurring spontaneously or accidentally in a country or region to which it is not native
an adventitious insect
2
3
: not congenital
adventitious deafness
adventitiously adverb
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