accessory

English

Alternative forms

• (noun): accessary

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /əkˈsɛsəɹi/, /ækˈsɛsəɹi/
• IPA^(key): /əkˈsɛs(ə)ɹi/, /ækˈsɛs(ə)ɹi/

• Audio (US)

  (file)

• Homophone: accessary

Etymology 1

First attested in 1550s. From Middle English accessorie, from Medieval Latin accessōrius, from Latin accessor (“helper, subordinate”), from accessus. Compare access, from same root.

Adjective

accessory (comparative more accessory, superlative most accessory)

1. Having a secondary, supplementary or subordinate function by accompanying as a subordinate; aiding in a secondary way; being additional; being connected as an incident or subordinate to a principal; contributing or being contributory. Said of people and things, and, when of people, usually in a bad sense

   She was accessory to the riot.

   accessory sounds in music

2. (law) Assisting a crime without actually participating in committing the crime itself.
3. Present in a minor amount, and not essential.

Synonyms

• (having a secondary function): accompanying, contributory, auxiliary, subsidiary, subservient, additional, acceding

Derived terms

• accessory breathing

Translations

having a supplementary function

• Arabic: كمالي
• Bulgarian: спомагателен (bg) (spomagatelen), допълнителен (bg) (dopǎlnitelen)
• Catalan: accessori
• Dutch: meegeleverd, toegevoegd (nl)
• Esperanto: akcesora
• Finnish: lisä-, apu-, täydentävä, ylimääräinen (fi)
• French: accessoire (fr)
• Galician: accesorio (gl) m
• German: nebensächlich (de), zusätzlich (de), begleitend (de)
• (deprecated template usage) {{trans-mid}}
• Greek: εξάρτημα (el) n (exártima)
• Icelandic: fylgihlutur m
• Ido: acesora (io)
• Interlingue:
• Persian: فرعی (fa) (far'ī), اضافی (fa) (ezāfī), یدکی (fa) (yadakī)
• Portuguese: acessório (pt)
• Romanian: accesoriu (ro)
• Russian: вспомога́тельный (ru) (vspomogátelʹnyj), доба́вочный (ru) (dobávočnyj), дополни́тельный (ru) (dopolnítelʹnyj)
• Spanish: accesorio (es), auxiliar (es)

assisting a crime

• Albanian: bashkëfajtor (sq) m, bashkëfajtore f
• Arabic: مساعد (ar)
• Bulgarian: съучастнически (sǎučastničeski)
• Dutch: medeplichtig (nl)
• Finnish: avustava (fi)
• Greek: συνεργός (el) m or f (synergós)
• (deprecated template usage) {{trans-mid}}
• Icelandic: vitorðsmaður m
• Persian: همدست (fa) (hamdast), شریک جرم (šarīk-ǰorm)
• Portuguese: cúmplice (pt)
• Russian: соуча́ствующий (ru) (součástvujuščij)
• Spanish: cómplice (es)

Etymology 2

• (legal): First attested in 1414.
• (fashion): First attested in 1896.

Noun

accessory (plural accessories)

1. Something that belongs to part of another main thing; something additional and subordinate, an attachment.

   the accessories of a mobile phone

   • (Can we date this quote?) Thomas Carlyle:

     the aspect and accessories of a den of banditti

2. (fashion) An article that completes one's basic outfit, such as a scarf or gloves.
   • 2018 June 5, Jonah Engel Bromwich, Vanessa Friedman, Matthew Schneier, “Kate Spade, whose handbags carried women into adulthood, is dead at 55”, in The New York Times‎^[1], New York, N.Y.: The New York Times Company, →ISSN, →OCLC:

     One of the first of a wave of American women contemporary designers who emerged in the 1990s, she [Kate Spade] built a brand on the appeal of clothes and accessories that made shoppers smile.

3. (law) A person who is not present at a crime, but contributes to it as an assistant or instigator.
4. (art) Something in a work of art without being indispensably necessary, for example solely ornamental parts.

Synonyms

• (something that belongs to part of another main thing): accompaniment, addition, attachment, supplement; See also Thesaurus:adjunct
• (one who assists in or instigates an offense): abettor, accomplice, ally, coadjutor, accessary

Derived terms

• accessory before the fact
• accessory after the fact

Descendants

• → Hebrew: אַקְסֵסוֹרִי (aksésori)

Translations

that which belongs to something else deemed the principal, attachment

• Armenian: պիտույք (hy) (pituykʻ), պարագա (hy) (paraga)
• Bulgarian: допълне́ние (bg) n (dopǎlnénie), принадле́жност (bg) f (prinadléžnost)
• Catalan: accessori m
• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 附屬品／附属品 (zh) (fùshǔpǐn), 附属品 (zh) (fùshǔpǐn)

• Dutch: accessoire (nl) n, aanhangsel (nl) n, toebehoren (nl) n
• Finnish: lisävaruste (fi), varuste (fi), tarvike (fi), oheistarvike
• French: accessoire (fr) m
• German: Zubehör (de) n
• Greek: παρελκόμενο n (parelkómeno), συμπλήρωμα (el) n (symplíroma)
• Hungarian: tartozék (hu)
• Icelandic: fylgihlutir
• (deprecated template usage) {{trans-mid}}
• Indonesian: aksesori (id)
• Interlingue:
• Italian: accessorio (it) m
• Malay: aksesori
• Maori: apatoko
• Persian: آکسسوار (âksesuâr)
• Polish: akcesorium (pl) n, akcesoria pl
• Portuguese: acessório (pt) m
• Romanian: accesoriu (ro) n
• Russian: принадле́жность (ru) f (prinadléžnostʹ)
• Spanish: accesorio (es) m, complemento (es) m
• Swedish: tillbehör (sv) n, accessoar (sv) c
• Vietnamese: phụ kiện đính kèm

clothing accessory

• Bulgarian: аксесоа́р (bg) m (aksesoár)
• Catalan: accessori m
• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 服飾品／服饰品 (zh) (fúshìpǐn), 服饰品 (zh) (fúshìpǐn)

• Czech: doplněk (cs) m
• Dutch: accessoire (nl) n, aanhangsel (nl) n, toebehoren (nl) n
• Finnish: asuste (fi)
• French: accessoire (fr) m
• German: Accessoire (de) n
• Hebrew: אקססורי m (aksésori)
• (deprecated template usage) {{trans-mid}}
• Hungarian: kiegészítő (hu)
• Indonesian: aksesori (id)
• Japanese: アクセサリー (ja) (akusesarii), 持ち物 (もちもの, mochimono)
• Korean: 액세서리 (ko) (aekseseori)
• Malay: aksesori
• Polish: dodatek (pl) m inan, dodatki pl
• Portuguese: acessório (pt) m
• Russian: аксессуа́р (ru) m (aksessuár)
• Spanish: accesorio (es) m
• Swedish: accessoar (sv) c

contributor to an offense

• Bulgarian: съуча́стник (bg) m (sǎučástnik)
• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 幫兇／帮凶 (zh) (bāngxiōng), 帮凶 (zh) (bāngxiōng)

• Dutch: medeplichtige (nl) m or f, handlanger (nl) m, handlangster f
• Finnish: avunantaja
• German: Beihilfe (de) f
• (deprecated template usage) {{trans-mid}}
• Greek: συνεργός (el) m or f (synergós)
• Polish: współsprawca m pers
• Portuguese: cúmplice (pt) m or f
• Russian: соуча́стник (ru) m (součástnik), соуча́стница (ru) f (součástnica)
• Spanish: cómplice (es) m or f
• Swedish: medbrottsling (sv) c, medhjälpare (sv) c

unessential part in a work of art

• Finnish: koriste (fi)
• French: accessoire (fr) m
• (deprecated template usage) {{trans-mid}}
• German: Accessoire (de) n
• Hungarian: bűntárs (hu)

The translations below need to be checked and inserted above into the appropriate translation tables. See instructions at Wiktionary:Entry layout § Translations.

Translations to be checked

• Interlingua: ^{(please verify)} accessorio
• Italian: ^{(please verify)} accessorio (it) m
• (deprecated template usage) {{trans-mid}}
• Romanian: ^{(please verify)} accesoriu (ro) n
• Swedish: ^{(please verify)} tillbehör (sv)

References

• “accessory”, in Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary, Springfield, Mass.: G. & C. Merriam, 1913, →OCLC.