supernumerary

Pluralsupernumeraries

1. 1
   beyond quotaadjective

   More than the usual, required or set number or amount; extra, and sometimes therefore unnecessary.

   The budget listed three supernumerary positions that the department could eliminate.

   Besides its regular crew of twelve, the cargo ship carried two supernumerary passengers.

   Similarextra, surplus, additional, superfluous, redundant

   Note

   The general adjective, from which the anatomical and "redundant" uses branch off. It applies to anything counted against a fixed number: a second queen in a hive, a spare stock of rennet stomachs, surplus posts in a budget. Source

   Checked 2 Nov 2026 · 1 fact

   • An additional queen in a hive can be described as supernumerary. en.wiktionary.org
2. 2
   extra (anatomy)adjective

   Of an organ or structure: present in addition to the number normally found.

   The X-ray revealed a supernumerary rib near the base of the neck.

   Surgeons removed the supernumerary nipple during a routine procedure.

   Similarextra, accessory, additional

   Note

   The anatomist's and botanist's use, for whatever a body or flower has one too many of: a supernumerary nipple, rib or tooth. The botanist John Lindley, in his Ladies' Botany, applies it to the floral disk, an organ distinct from stamens and petals. In lung anatomy it has become a fixed class name: supernumerary arteries branch at right angles from the conventional ones. The variant spelling supranumerary also occurs. Source

   Checked 31 Oct 2026 · 5 facts

   • Additional nipples, ribs and teeth are examples of supernumerary body parts. en.wikipedia.org
   • John Lindley was a botanist. en.wikipedia.org
   • In Ladies' Botany, Lindley describes the disk as a supernumerary organ distinct from stamens or petals. en.wiktionary.org
   • Pulmonary supernumerary arteries branch at right angles from conventional arteries. en.wiktionary.org
   • Supranumerary occurs as a variant of supernumerary. en.wiktionary.org
3. 3
   nouncountable

   A person who works in a group, association, or office without belonging to the regular staff.

   During the busy summer, the embassy hired a supernumerary to help process visa applications.

   As a supernumerary, she attended meetings but held no permanent appointment.

   Similarextra, auxiliary

   Note

   The sense that stays closest to its Latin source. Late Latin supernumerarius meant an extra soldier added to a legion, from super "above, beyond" and numerus "number". The regular staff are the numerary, and the supernumerary stands just outside that count. Military and naval usage treated the word almost as a title written after a name, as in "Albert Hawkins, Supernumerary in the 4th Foot." Source

   Checked 31 Oct 2026 · 4 facts

   • The word derives from Late Latin supernumerarius, an extra soldier added to a legion, formed from super and numerus. en.wiktionary.org
   • Numerary denotes someone holding a regular or permanent position. en.wiktionary.org
   • Military records placed Supernumerary after a person's name, including Albert Hawkins in the 4th Foot. thegazette.co.uk
   • Naval appointment records likewise used Supernumerary as a formal personnel designation following a named officer. dspace.gipe.ac.in
4. 4
   walk-on actornouncountable

   An extra or walk-on performer, often non-speaking, who appears in a film or stage play.

   The opera house needed forty supernumeraries to fill the stage for the coronation scene.

   As a supernumerary, he carried a spear across the stage without a single line.

   UsageOften after as: work as a supernumerary. Theater people shorten it to super.

   Similarextra, walk-on

   Note

   The Late Latin source suits the job: supernumerarius was an extra soldier added to a legion, and the theatrical supernumerary still fills out a crowd, a procession or an army onstage. It often comes after as (making the rounds as a supernumerary), and Hendrik Casimir's Haphazard Reality (1983) pairs it with the minor actor, the rung of the cast below the speaking leads. Source

   Checked 2 Nov 2026 · 3 facts

   • The Late Latin source supernumerarius denoted an extra soldier added to a legion. en.wiktionary.org
   • Hendrik Casimir wrote Haphazard Reality, first published in English in 1983. pt.slideshare.net
   • Casimir's introduction pairs supernumerary with minor actor. pt.slideshare.net
5. 5
   nouncountable

   An item that exceeds the prescribed or standard amount or number.

   Through the spray of the waterfall, we could make out the bright main arc and two pale supernumeraries beneath it.

   Unlike the standard chromosomes, the supernumerary in these plants was not needed for normal growth.

   Similarextra, spare

   Note

   The noun often works as shorthand for a phrase already named. In dentistry, a supernumerary tooth becomes simply "the supernumerary" in the next sentence, borrowing its meaning from the anatomical adjective. Mary Howitt, in Little Coin, Much Care (1842), uses the word of a fourth engraving that seemed one too many for the room. That is the everyday sense: the item left over once the count is complete. Source

   Checked 31 Oct 2026 · 2 facts

   • Mary Howitt wrote Little Coin, Much Care, first published in 1842. en.wikisource.org
   • The book describes a fourth engraving as temporarily seeming supernumerary. en.wiktionary.org
6. 6
   Opus Deinouncountable

   A lay member of Opus Dei, the Roman Catholic institution, who is free to marry and usually lives an ordinary family life in their own home.

   He became a supernumerary of Opus Dei in his thirties while continuing to work as an engineer and raise his family.

   A supernumerary commits to the spirituality of Opus Dei without taking religious vows.

   Note

   Opus Dei sorts its members with an old administrative pair of words. Numeraries are celibate and often live in community; supernumeraries can marry and live in their own homes, with slightly fewer spiritual obligations. Supernumeraries make up the bulk of the membership. The same numerary/supernumerary split shapes the office-staff sense, but here it marks a way of life rather than a post. Source

   Checked 31 Oct 2026 · 4 facts

   • Opus Dei's membership terminology comes from civil administrative terminology. multimedia.opusdei.org
   • Numeraries commit to celibacy and ordinarily live in Opus Dei centres. opusdei.org
   • Supernumeraries may marry, live in their own homes, and have slightly fewer spiritual obligations. en.wiktionary.org
   • Supernumeraries constitute the majority of Opus Dei's membership. multimedia.opusdei.org

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