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vestigial

[ve-stij-ee-uhl, -stij-uhl] / vɛˈstɪdʒ i əl, -ˈstɪdʒ əl /




ADJECTIVE
surviving
Synonyms


Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

If lawmakers have a vestigial sense of shame, they can apologize to the victims whose information was posted.

From The Wall Street Journal • Feb. 3, 2026

Companies have skimped on dividends amid an epic bull run for stock prices, leaving the S&P 500’s yield of just 1.1% looking like finance’s vestigial tailbone—an evolutionary holdover without a clear purpose.

From Barron's • Nov. 21, 2025

The newspaper endorsement is in many ways vestigial from an era when these outlets wielded vastly more cultural influence than they currently do.

From Slate • Oct. 26, 2024

The discovery of these vestigial eyes may help link the fossils, which are thought to be more than 400 million years old, more directly with their descendants, clarifying their place on the arachnid family tree.

From New York Times • Mar. 1, 2024

There is something vestigial about the horses of Milagro.

From "The Milagro Beanfield War" by John Nichols




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