vicarious C2 Topic:Describing People US /vaɪˈkɛɹi.əs/ UK /vɪˈkɛəɹi.əs/ See IPA manual Freq #72917 Meanings 1 adj suffered or done by one person as a substitute for another The children thanked their parents for their vicarious atonement. 2 adj occurring in an abnormal part of the body instead of the usual site involved in that function The patient had vicarious menstruation from their nose. 3 adj experienced at secondhand I read about mountain climbing and felt vicarious excitement. 4 adj Experienced or gained by taking in another person’s experience rather than through first-hand experience, such as through watching or reading. People experience vicarious pleasures through watching television. Thesaurus Word family Forms vicariously Derived forms vicariously Related forms vicar Common collocations vicarious atonement Adjective + noun Etymology Adapted borrowing of Latin vicārius (“vicarious, substituted”) + -ous, 17th century. Doublet of vicar. Topics Describing People External links Cambridge Dictionary Wiktionary Google Images # vicarious **Type:** Word **Level:** C2 **Part of speech:** adj **IPA (US):** /vaɪˈkɛɹi.əs/ **IPA (UK):** /vɪˈkɛəɹi.əs/ **Frequency rank:** 72917 ## Meanings 1. suffered or done by one person as a substitute for another 2. occurring in an abnormal part of the body instead of the usual site involved in that function 3. experienced at secondhand 4. Experienced or gained by taking in another person’s experience rather than through first-hand experience, such as through watching or reading. ## Examples - The children thanked their parents for their vicarious atonement. - The patient had vicarious menstruation from their nose. - I read about mountain climbing and felt vicarious excitement. - People experience vicarious pleasures through watching television. ## Derived Forms - vicariously ## Related Forms - vicar ## Etymology Adapted borrowing of Latin vicārius (“vicarious, substituted”) + -ous, 17th century. Doublet of vicar. ## Topics - Describing People markdown