sedentary

adjective

sed·​en·​tary ˈse-dᵊn-ˌter-ē 

1

: not migratory : settled

sedentary birds

sedentary civilizations

2

a

: doing or requiring much sitting

a sedentary job

b

: not physically active

a sedentary lifestyle

3

: permanently attached

sedentary barnacles

Did you know?

Sit and Learn About Sedentary

Sedentary comes from Latin sedēre, meaning "to sit." Other descendants of sedēre include dissident, insidious, preside, reside, and subsidy. Sedēre is also the base of the rare sedens, a noun meaning "a person who remains a resident of the place or region of his or her birth."

Examples of sedentary in a Sentence

Editing the dictionary is a sedentary job.

The work is very sedentary.

Their health problems were caused by their sedentary lifestyles.

He became sedentary later on in his life.

Recent Examples on the Web

Compared to the most sedentary members of the group, the most active women were significantly less likely—by 30% or even more—to experience either outcome, no matter how the researchers measured their activity. —Jamie Ducharme, TIME, 21 May 2024

Unfortunately, the vast majority of Americans are sedentary and miss out on this benefit. —Bryant Stamford, The Courier-Journal, 16 May 2024

Word History

Etymology

Middle French sedentaire, from Latin sedentarius, from sedent-, sedens, present participle of sedēre to sit — more at sit

First Known Use

1598, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Podcast

Get Word of the Day delivered to your inbox!

Kids Definition

sedentary

adjective

sed·​en·​tary ˈsed-ᵊn-ˌter-ē 

1

: not migratory : settled

sedentary birds

2

: doing or requiring much sitting

a sedentary job

Medical Definition

sedentary

adjective

sed·​en·​tary ˈsed-ᵊn-ˌter-ē 

: doing or requiring much sitting : characterized by a lack of physical activity

increased risk of heart disease for those with sedentary jobs