ˌsüpəˌrerəˈgāshən noun
( -s )
Etymology: Medieval Latin supererogation-, supererogatio, from supererogatus (past participle of supererogare to perform beyond the call of duty, from Late Latin, to expend in addition, from Latin super- + erogare to expend money from the public treasury after asking the consent of the people, from e- + ragare to ask) + Latin -ion-, -io -ion — more at right
1. : the act or process or an instance of performing more than is required by duty or obligation ; specifically : the performance beyond what is considered by the Roman Catholic Church to be necessary for salvation of good deeds of the kind believed to have been done by the saints or to be capable of being done by men
2. : the act or process or an instance of performing more than necessary to complete an undertaking
repeating the experiment would be an act of supererogation