Sed"en*ta*ry (?), a. [L. sedentarius, fr. sedere to sit: cf. F. se'edentaire. See Sedent.]
1.
Accustomed to sit much or long; as, a sedentary man.
"
Sedentary, scholastic sophists."
Bp. Warburton.
2.
Characterized by, or requiring, much sitting; as, a sedentary employment; a sedentary life.
Any education that confined itself to sedentary pursuits was essentially imperfect.
Beaconsfield.
3.
Inactive; motionless; sluggish; hence, calm; tranquil.
[R.] "The
sedentary earth."
Milton.
The soul, considered abstractly from its passions, is of a remiss, sedentary nature.
Spectator.
4.
Caused by long sitting.
[Obs.] "
Sedentary numbness."
Milton.
5. Zool.
Remaining in one place, especially when firmly attached to some object; as, the oyster is a sedentary mollusk; the barnacles are sedentary crustaceans.
Sedentary spider Zool., one of a tribe of spiders which rest motionless until their prey is caught in their web.
© Webster 1913.