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sumptuary

 - 3 dictionary results

sump⋅tu⋅ary

  [suhmp-choo-er-ee]
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–adjective
1. pertaining to, dealing with, or regulating expense or expenditure.
2. intended to regulate personal habits on moral or religious grounds.
Origin:
1590–1600; < L sūmptuārius, equiv. to sūmptu(s) spending, expense (sūm(ere) to take, procure (see consume ) + intrusive -p- + -tus suffix of v. action) + -ārius -ary
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
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sump·tu·ar·y   (sŭmp'chōō-ěr'ē)   
adj.  

  1. Regulating or limiting personal expenditures.

    1. Regulating commercial or real-estate activities: sumptuary laws discouraging construction of large houses on small plots of land.

    2. Regulating personal behavior on moral or religious grounds: sumptuary laws forbidding gambling.


[Latin sūmptuārius, from sūmptus, expense, from past participle of sūmere, to take, buy; see em- in Indo-European roots.]
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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Word Origin & History

sumptuary 
"pertaining to expense," 1600, from L. sumptuarius "relating to expenses," from sumptus "expensive" (see sumptuous).
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
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