Definitions
American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
- adj. Of secondary importance: "For Degas, sculpture was never more than ancillary to his painting” ( Herbert Read).
- adj. Auxiliary; helping: an ancillary pump.
- n. Something, such as a workbook, that is subordinate to something else, such as a textbook.
- n. Archaic A servant.
Century Dictionary and Cyclopedia
- Serving as an aid, adjunct, or accessory; subservient; auxiliary; supplementary.
Wiktionary
- adj. Subordinate; secondary; auxiliary; accessory.
- n. Something that serves an ancillary function, such as an easel for a painter.
- n. archaic An auxiliary; a subordinate.
GNU Webster's 1913
- adj. Subservient or subordinate, like a handmaid; auxiliary.
WordNet 3.0
- adj. furnishing added support
Etymologies
- From Latin ancillāris, from ancilla ("maid"), diminutive of ancula, feminine of anculus ("a male servant"), from *ancus ("a servant"), from ambi- ("about") + Proto-Indo-European *kwol-o-, from base *kwel- (“move round, turn about, be much about”). (Wiktionary)
- From Latin ancilla, maidservant, feminine diminutive of anculus, servant; see kwel-1 in Indo-European roots. (American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition)
Examples
“US Airways for example is set to earn ancillary revenues of $400 million to $500 million from its ancillary revenue programme in 2009.”
“However, we have, in California and other state, what we call ancillary probate.”
“But there's still a lot of what we call ancillary action around.”
“Beyond the salary cap system issues that divide the sides, union executive director Billy Hunter said there were six pages of what he called ancillary items, such as the draft age and the commissioner's disciplinary rights, that still must be addressed before a deal.”
“The trend toward à la carte pricing - once the hallmark of no-frills, low-cost carriers - has in recent years been adopted by the legacy airlines, and will likely continue in 2009, as carriers try to boost what they call ancillary revenue.”
“American Airlines, which last year pocketed an extra billion in "ancillary revenue," calls them "a pretty big success story.”
“Why have tax payers pay twice for this program ... federal tax dollars and state tax dollars, plus we'd save money in ancillary costs ie salaries, retirement and other overhead costs.”
Sound Politics: "Sales tax bill could make your online purchases cost more"
“Revealed truth, given through the tra - dition to which one is committed, must be the ruling mistress; philosophy, through which the metaphors of scripture are harmonized with each other and with other systematic knowledge, must be ancillary (from ancilla, the Latin word for serving girl).”
“But I am going to ask your indulgence and supposing I do not concentrate entirely on Empire trade, but speak on certain ancillary matters which I believe are bound up with Empire trade, then I hope you will understand.”
“So, we were excited about that the ancillary services market I think are particularly encouraging where the same technology that we have and many of the same customers that we have can participate in these more frequent shorter term ancillary services opportunities that basically another revenue stream on top of our capacity revenue.”
Lists
These user-created lists contain the word ‘ancillary’.
-
BUDG - general terms
Budgetese - not a sexy topic but a very comprehensive list of words and collocations used in EU circles. Budgeting experts please comment and expand.
heading, across-the-board ..., emergency reserve, frontload, mopping-up, performance reserve, positive margin, negative margin, public finances, structural operat..., administrative ex..., management of EU ... and 657 more...
-
GRE Barrons Wordlist
A complete Barron's Wordlist for GRE preparation. Your online flashcard replacement.
abase, abash, abate, abbreviate, abdicate, aberrant, aberration, abet, abeyance, abhor, abject, abjure and 4087 more...
-
Test Prep or Just for fun
Building a list for standardized test prep or just for learning some new words! Please add any words that you feel are important for the SAT/GRE/GMAT etc...
throng, morass, parley, facile, kismet, strife, jetsam, carrion, annex, harbinger, vestige, surreptitious and 575 more...
-
Rare Words - A
Not just rare words, but thousands of RARE WORDS WITH DEFINITIONS.
If you want to see the definitions, too, go to
http://phrontistery.i...aba, abacinate, abactor, abaculus, abaft, abampere, abapical, abarticular, abasement, abasia, abask, abatis and 1214 more...
-
IMCO - EU nomenclature
includes words of the "Prodcom list"
abaca, abdominal, abrasive, absorbent, absorber, accelerator, accessory, account book, accumulator, acebutolol, acetaldehyde, acetamide and 4515 more...
-
Words build meanings from origins( et...
These come from gamma meditation ,I think.
discursive, exogenous, machinations, purportedly, sumptuous, congruity, cantankerous, incongruous, festoon, hessian, ratiocinative, stratigraphic and 2053 more...
-
phrontistery - a
from phrontistery.info
axilla, avalement, argil, argent, argand, arete, aretaics, areometer, areology, arenoid, arenaceous, arefy and 1214 more...
-
Tricky To Spell or Pronounce
ply, stationary, stationery, monetize, finagle, cartilaginous, apposite, languor, douceur, Umwelt, faze, sequela and 13 more...
-
Vocabulary
shibboleth, verboten, jejune, ostensible, multifarious, quintessence, purportedly, tangential, vacillate, quagmire, wanton, onerous and 74 more...
-
Remember Not To Forget
Sephardic, Umwelt, amphiboly, untrammeled, sequela, pandiculation, tensegrity, syncretism, pugilism, shemagh, disquisition, perspicacity and 65 more...
-
Assist
abet, advocate, ancillary, bolster, corroborate, countenance, espouse, munificent, mainstay, proponent, stalwart, sustenance
-
Good for Academics
Gahh!! Study!
supplant, usurp, finagle, winnow, draconian, abut, collude, swindle, objectify, incite, decadent, obstinate and 327 more...
-
GRE Words
abjure, unswear, state, rescission, indemnification, ab, reny, abnegate, vitiated, vitiate, adumbrated, abash and 378 more...
-
To Learn
enervate, redolent, distaff, approbation, arrogate, bonhomie, palliate, calumny, panoply, contumacious, edify, dyspeptic and 188 more...
-
g sat ana-ante
anathema, ancillary, animosity, animus, annals, annex, annuity, anoint, antecede, antecedent
-
Words I have to learn
exasperate, felony, weld, fraud, worksheet, ransom, rehearse, preliminary, offshore, parole, infamous, sieve and 436 more...
Tweets
Looking for tweets for ancillary.
cutlery I absolutely hate the sound of this word. It sounds like it should be "ancillIary" and it actually makes the hair stand up on my nape, reading it. Mar 13, 2010
seanahan Most often used to describe benefits, I would say. May 16, 2009
amorfati –adjective
1. subordinate; subsidiary. May 16, 2009