factitious

[fak-tish-uh s] /fækˈtɪʃ əs/
adjective
1.
not spontaneous or natural; artificial; contrived:
factitious laughter; factitious enthusiasm.
2.
made; manufactured:
a decoration of factitious flowers and leaves.
Origin
1640-50; < Latin factīcius made by art, artificial. See fact, -itious
Related forms
factitiously, adverb
factitiousness, noun
nonfactitious, adjective
nonfactitiously, adverb
nonfactitiousness, noun
overfactitious, adjective
Can be confused
facetious, factious, factitious, fictional, fictitious.
factitious, fictional, fictitious, fictive.
British Dictionary definitions for factitious

factitious

/fækˈtɪʃəs/
adjective
1.
artificial rather than natural: factitious demands created by the mass media
2.
not genuine; sham: factitious enthusiasm
Derived Forms
factitiously, adverb
factitiousness, noun
Word Origin
C17: from Latin factīcius, from facere to make, do
Word Origin and History for factitious
adj.

1640s, from Latin factitius "artificial," from factus, past participle of facere "do" (source of French faire, Spanish hacer), from PIE root *dhe- "to put, to do" (cf. Sanskrit dadhati "puts, places;" Avestan dadaiti "he puts;" Old Persian ada "he made;" Hittite dai- "to place;" Greek tithenai "to put, set, place;" Lithuanian deti "to put;" Polish dziać się "to be happening;" Russian delat' "to do;" Old High German tuon, German tun, Old Saxon, Old English don "to do;" Old Frisian dua, Old Swedish duon, Gothic gadeths "a doing;" Old Norse dalidun "they did").

factitious in Medicine

factitious fac·ti·tious (fāk-tĭsh'əs)
adj.
Produced artificially rather than by a natural process.