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sump·tu·ar·y

(sŭmpch-ĕr′ē)

adj.

1. Legally regulating expenditures considered extravagant.

2. Legally prohibiting or discouraging, as by the imposition of taxes, certain behaviors: sumptuary laws forbidding gambling.

[Latin sūmptuārius, from sūmptus, expense, from past participle of sūmere, to take, buy; see em- in the Appendix of Indo-European roots.]

Indo-European & Semitic Roots Appendices

Thousands of entries in the dictionary include etymologies that trace their origins back to reconstructed proto-languages. You can obtain more information about these forms in our online appendices:

Indo-European Roots

Semitic Roots

The Indo-European appendix covers nearly half of the Indo-European roots that have left their mark on English words. A more complete treatment of Indo-European roots and the English words derived from them is available in our Dictionary of Indo-European Roots.

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