Something non-essential is not something you completely need. You can get by without it, at least for a while. Food, water, medicine, and keeping the lights on are essential; a new phone case, a holiday, or a haircut can be called non-essential.

Something non-essential非必要的東西 is not不是 you你 completely need完全需要 something的那種東西。without it沒有它 You你 can get by也過得去，at least至少 for a while一陣子。Food食物、water水、medicine藥，and keeping the lights on和讓家裡的燈亮著 are essential是必要的；a new phone case新的手機殼、a holiday一趟度假、or a haircut或剪一次頭髮 can be called可以被說是 non-essential非必要的

The word got loud during lockdowns, when governments said which shops and jobs were “essential” and which were not — though actually that was a policy label, not a moral one: a bookshop can matter a lot to you and still be non-essential in that official sense.

The word這個詞 during lockdowns在封城期間 got loud變得很常聽到，when那時 governments政府 said宣布 which shops and jobs哪些商店和工作 were “essential”是「essential」 and which were not、哪些不是——though actually不過其實 that那 was a policy label是政策上的標籤，not a moral one不是道德上的：a bookshop一家書店 to you對你 can matter a lot可能很重要，and still仍然 in that official sense在那個官方意義上 be non-essential算非必要

In ordinary talk it just means “nice to have, not must-have,” and it is a bit more formal than “not that important.”

In ordinary talk在日常談話裡 it它 just means就只是指 “nice to have, not must-have,”「有也不錯、但不是非有不可」，and it而它 than “not that important.”比 “not that important.” is a bit more formal正式一點