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Meanings of optional in English

Russian
необязательно
Portuguese
opcional
Spanish
opcional
Catalan
opcional

Non-mandatory.

Related terms
необязательно
Portuguese
opcional

Possible but not necessary; left to personal choice.

Related terms
opcional
Usage of optional in English
1
Agree that solidarity must not be optional, said Prime Minister Robert Abela.
Reuters
2
Radical reform in health is, in my view, not some optional extra.
The Irish Times
3
The water is crystal clear and this is definitely a clothing-optional beach.
The Guardian
4
Although this is an optional question it narrowed the choice for students.
The Irish Times
5
At one point, sharing your relationship status on social media was optional.
Ebony
6
The designers nudge you toward different approaches by way of optional objectives.
The Guardian
7
There is, however, an optional Newtonian flight model, which is pretty accurate.
The Guardian
8
And so we like to say change is inevitable Progress is optional.
The new yorker
9
Each turn consists of the following sequence of mandatory and optional actions:
Wired
10
But an attractive-enough music service offered in optional form could gain traction.
Wired
11
The manner of fastening the ribs to the frame pieces is optional.
Flying Machines: Construction and Operation / A Practical Book W...
12
On AIX systems, there are some additional optional fields beyond the destination:
Essential system administration, 3rd edition
13
If you use the optional sugar, the calorie count will be 65.
Joy bauer's food cures
14
Why doesn't the administration just say - classes are now officially optional.
Wired
15
No special effort or acuity is required, but patience is not optional.
The new yorker
16
Now he has proved he considers foreign policy knowledge largely optional, too.
The Guardian
About this term
More collocations
Translations for optional
Optional through the time
Optional across language varieties
South Africa
Common
Australia
Common
Ireland
Common
More variants