Arbitrarily
[,ɑrbə'trɛrəli]
Definition
(adv.) In an arbitrary manner; by will only; despotically; absolutely.
Typed by Ina
Examples
- They admit variation as a vera causa in one case, they arbitrarily reject it in another, without assigning any distinction in the two cases. Charles Darwin. On the Origin of Species by Means of Natural Selection.
- But the cruelest habit the modern prophecy-savans have, is that one of coolly and arbitrarily fitting the prophetic shirt on to the wrong man. Mark Twain. The Innocents Abroad.
- It is my misfortune to be, not so much a man of business, as what the world calls (arbitrarily) a gentleman. Charles Dickens. Little Dorrit.
- Politics, as the contributors to the Congressional Record seem to understand it, is a very limited selection of well-worn debates on a few arbitrarily chosen problems. Walter Lippmann. A Preface to Politics.
Typed by Ina