redundant

adjective re·dun·dant \ri-ˈdən-dənt\

: repeating something else and therefore unnecessary

—used to describe part of a machine, system, etc., that has the same function as another part and that exists so that the entire machine, system, etc., will not fail if the main part fails

: dismissed from a job because you are no longer needed

Full Definition of REDUNDANT

a : exceeding what is necessary or normal : superfluous

b : characterized by or containing an excess; specifically : using more words than necessary

c : characterized by similarity or repetition <a group of particularly redundant brick buildings>

d chiefly British : no longer needed for a job and hence laid off

: profuse, lavish

: serving as a duplicate for preventing failure of an entire system (as a spacecraft) upon failure of a single component

— re·dun·dant·ly adverb

See redundant defined for English-language learners

See redundant defined for kids

Examples of REDUNDANT

The drone had originally been designed to go places the Blackbird could not, but it had become redundant on discovery of the fact that there was nowhere the SR-71 could not go in safety … —Tom Clancy, The Cardinal of the Kremlin, 1989
Undoubtedly in ninety-nine cases out of a hundred a witness to an occurrence is someone who has seen it. Therefore, some editors have said, eyewitness is a redundant word and it should be consigned to the dustbin. —Theodore M. Bernstein, Mrs. Thistlebottom's Hobgoblins, 1971
There they sat, grounded upon the ground, silent, uncomplaining, with bowed heads, a pathetic sight. And by hideous contrast, a redundant orator was making a speech to another gathering not thirty steps away … —Mark Twain, A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court, 1889
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