# auxiliary
## English
### Etymology

From Latin auxiliārius (“assistant, ally”), equiv. to auxiliāris (“helping, aiding”), from auxilium (“help, aid”), from augēre (“to increase”).

### Pronunciation

* (Received Pronunciation) IPA: /ɔːɡˈzɪl.(j)ə.ɹi/, /ɔːɡˈzɪl.i.ə.ɹi/, /ɔːkˈsɪl-/
* Audio (Southern England):(file)
* (General American) IPA: /ɔɡˈzɪl.((j)ə).ɹi/, /ɔɡˈzɪl.i.ɛɹ.i/
** (cot–caught merger) IPA: /ɑɡˈzɪl.((j)ə).ɹi/, /ɑɡˈzɪl.i.ɛɹ.i/
* Rhymes: -ɪliəɹi
* Rhymes: -ɪliɛəɹi
* Rhymes: -ɪləɹi

### Adjective

auxiliary (not comparable)
* Helping; giving assistance or support.
    auxiliary troops
    Synonyms: ancillary, accessory
* Supplementary or subsidiary.
* Held in reserve for exceptional circumstances.
* (nautical) Of a ship, having both sails and an engine.
* (grammar) Relating to an auxiliary verb.

#### Synonyms

* (supplementary): accessory
* (having sails and engine): motorsailer

#### Translations

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

### Noun

auxiliary (plural auxiliaries)
* A person or group that acts in an auxiliary manner.
** 1950 November, “Mixed-Traffic Diesel-Electric Locomotives for Ireland”, in Railway Magazine, page 781:Auxiliaries and ancillaries are comprehensive, and include a Westinghouse motor-driven recriprocating compressor used for locomotive braking and general service air, two rotary exhauster sets for train brakes when hauling passenger or fitted freight trains, and an oil-fired train heating boiler.
** 1962 September, G. Freeman Allen, “The New Look in Scotland's Northern Division—1”, in Modern Railways, page 163:A drive to exploit the Highlands as a winter sports area, with all the necessary auxiliaries, such as chair lifts in the Cairngorms, shows increasing promise, [...].
* A sailing vessel equipped with an engine.
* (grammar) An auxiliary verb.
** 1988, Andrew Radford, Transformational grammar: a first course, Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press, page 151:The three traditionally recognized Non-modal Auxiliaries are the per- fective Auxiliary have, the progressive Auxiliary be, and the passive Auxiliary be. Perfective have is so-called because it marks the completion (hence, perfec- tion) of an action; it is followed by a VP headed by a perfective -n participle, as in: (121) The referee has [$_{VP}$ shown him the red card]
* A marching band colorguard.

#### Translations
### Derived terms

* Auxie
* auxiliarily
* auxiliarist
* auxiliary bishop
* auxiliary cruiser
* auxiliary ego
* auxiliary language
* auxiliary oiler
* auxiliary power unit
* auxiliary storage
* auxlang
* electroauxiliary
* international auxiliary language
* ladies' auxiliary
* modal auxiliary
* nonauxiliary
* nurse auxiliary
* perfect auxiliary
* semiauxiliary

### Related terms

* auction
* auctioneer
* augment
* augmentation

### See also

* axillary

### Further reading

* “auxiliary”, in Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary, Springfield, Mass.: G. & C. Merriam, 1913, →OCLC.
* “auxiliary”, in The Century Dictionary […], New York, N.Y.: The Century Co., 1911, →OCLC.
* “auxiliary”, in Lexico, Dictionary.com; Oxford University Press, 2019–2022.