Perfunctory – Done only for the sake of getting rid of the duty.
We perform our daily perfunctory tasks with haste and, if possible with minimum effort.
For instance, we tend to greet each other with perfunctory greetings. Without genuine interest, we might ask, “How are you?”
Perfunctory is from Latin perfunctus, which means: to perform, or, to have done with.
Perfunctus is a combination of the two Latin words. The preposition per means through. The deponent verb fungor, means: to perform.
In this sense, the Latin word helps us understand the English word. We have no real interest in perfunctory tasks. They are routine. And, they may be a nuisance. We just want to perform them and move on. We do what we have to do in order to get to the things we want to do.
