Category:Sedentary

Sed"en*ta*ry, a. Etym: [l. sedentarius, fr. sedere to sit: cf. F. Seédentaire. See sedent.]

1. Accustomed to sit much or long; as, a sedentary man. "sedentary, Scholastic sophists." Bp. Warburton.

2. Characterized by, or requiring, much sitting; as, a sedentary Employment; a sedentary life. Any education that confined itself to sedentary pursuits was Essentially imperfect. Beaconsfield.

3. Inactive; motionless; sluggish; hence, calm; tranquil. [r.] "the Sedentary earth." Milton. The soul, considered abstractly from its passions, is of a remiss, Sedentary nature. Spectator.

4. Caused by long sitting. [obs.] "sedentary numbness." Milton.

5. (zoöl.)

Defn: remaining in one place, especially when firmly attached to some Object; as, the oyster is a sedentary mollusk; the barnacles are Sedentary crustaceans. Sedentary spider (zoöl.), one of a tribe of Spiders which rest motionless until their prey is caught in their Web.