sedentary
7 antonyms and opposites of sedentary, grouped by meaning.
Adjective — Involving or characterised by much sitting and little physical activity.
Synonyms by Meaning
1. adjective
Involving or characterised by much sitting and little physical activity.
“Years of sedentary office work left him stiff and out of condition.”
Opposites
2. adjective biology
Of an animal, staying in one place rather than migrating; of a species, fixed to a surface for most of its life.
“Unlike its migratory cousins, this warbler is sedentary and stays on the island all year.”
Opposites
3. adjective anthropology, history
Of a people or way of life, settled in one place rather than moving from place to place.
“Farming allowed once-nomadic groups to become sedentary.”
Opposites
Antonyms
How to use sedentary
The word patterns that sound natural to a native speaker.
Neutral; very common in health, fitness and medical writing.
Etymology
From Latin sedentarius 'sitting, of one who sits at work', from sedere 'to sit'.
Full origin of sedentary →Frequently asked questions
How many hours of sitting counts as sedentary?
Researchers usually define sedentary behaviour as any waking activity done sitting or reclining that burns very little energy, rather than by a fixed number of hours. In practice studies often flag people who sit more than about eight hours a day with little moderate exercise as at raised risk.
What is the difference between sedentary and inactive?
Sedentary describes the sitting itself; inactive means not getting enough exercise. You can be both, but you can also be physically active in the gym and still spend most of the day sedentary, which carries its own health risk.
How do you pronounce sedentary?
SED-ən-ter-ee in American English and SED-ən-tri or SED-ən-tər-ee in British English. The stress is on the first syllable.