natural

[nach-er-uh l, nach-ruh l] /ˈnætʃ ər əl, ˈnætʃ rəl/
adjective
1.
existing in or formed by nature (opposed to artificial):
a natural bridge.
2.
based on the state of things in nature; constituted by nature:
Growth is a natural process.
3.
of or pertaining to nature or the universe:
natural beauty.
4.
of, pertaining to, or occupied with the study of natural science:
conducting natural experiments.
5.
in a state of nature; uncultivated, as land.
6.
growing spontaneously, without being planted or tended by human hand, as vegetation.
7.
having undergone little or no processing and containing no chemical additives:
natural food; natural ingredients.
Compare organic (def 11).
8.
having a real or physical existence, as opposed to one that is spiritual, intellectual, fictitious, etc.
9.
of, pertaining to, or proper to the nature or essential constitution:
natural ability.
10.
proper to the circumstances of the case:
a natural result of his greed.
11.
free from affectation or constraint:
a natural manner.
12.
arising easily or spontaneously:
a natural courtesy to strangers.
13.
consonant with the nature or character of.
14.
in accordance with the nature of things:
It was natural that he should hit back.
15.
based upon the innate moral feeling of humankind:
natural justice.
16.
in conformity with the ordinary course of nature; not unusual or exceptional.
17.
happening in the ordinary or usual course of things, without the intervention of accident, violence, etc.
18.
related only by birth; of no legal relationship; illegitimate:
a natural son.
19.
related by blood rather than by adoption.
20.
based on what is learned from nature rather than on revelation.
21.
true to or closely imitating nature:
a natural representation.
22.
unenlightened or unregenerate:
the natural man.
23.
being such by nature; born such:
a natural fool.
24.
Music.
  1. neither sharp nor flat.
  2. changed in pitch by the sign ♮.
25.
not treated, tanned, refined, etc.; in its original or raw state:
natural wood; natural cowhide.
26.
(of a horn or trumpet) having neither side holes nor valves.
27.
not tinted or colored; undyed.
28.
having a pale tannish or grayish-yellow color, as many woods and untreated animal skins.
29.
Cards.
  1. being a card other than a wild card or joker.
  2. (of a set or sequence of cards) containing no wild cards.
30.
having or showing feelings, as affection, gratitude, or kindness, considered part of basic human nature.
31.
Afro (def 1).
noun
32.
any person or thing that is or is likely or certain to be very suitable to and successful in an endeavor without much training or difficulty.
33.
Music.
  1. a white key on a piano, organ, or the like.
  2. the sign ♮, placed before a note, canceling the effect of a previous sharp or flat.
  3. a note affected by a ♮, or a tone thus represented.
34.
an idiot.
35.
Cards. blackjack (def 2b).
36.
Afro (def 2).
37.
(in craps) a winning combination of seven or eleven made on the first cast.
38.
a natural substance or a product made with such a substance:
an ointment containing mink oil and other naturals.
Origin
1300-50; Middle English < Latin nātūrālis (see nature, -al1); replacing Middle English naturel < Middle French < Latin, as above
Related forms
naturalness, noun
antinatural, adjective
antinaturally, adverb
antinaturalness, noun
hypernatural, adjective
hypernaturally, adverb
hypernaturalness, noun
nonnatural, adjective
nonnaturally, adverb
nonnaturalness, noun
prenatural, adjective
quasi-natural, adjective
quasi-naturally, adverb
subnatural, adjective
subnaturally, adverb
subnaturalness, noun
transnatural, adjective
transnaturally, adverb
Synonyms
11. spontaneous, unaffected, genuine, unmannered.
Examples from the web for natural
  • Using natural light and organic materials also blends the essence of the outdoors with the indoors.
  • If you are sometimes confused when navigating the different marketing terms for organic and natural products you are not alone.
  • Organic and natural remedies for sore throats are often packaged as sprays, lozenges or herbal teas.
  • One of the world's largest natural stone arches has been discovered in the central highlands of Afghanistan.
  • He clearly saw, however, the full force of the principle of natural selection.
  • Therein lies the paradox of the natural-gas powered car.
  • Volkswagen has been doing a lot with bio-sourced compressed natural gas lately.
  • Maps indicate areas of risk or occurrences of six natural hazards.
  • People looking for natural cures will be happy to know there is one.
  • Its natural oiliness means that it is rich in healthy omega-3 and that it will have a rich meatiness when cooked.
British Dictionary definitions for natural

natural

/ˈnætʃrəl; -tʃərəl/
adjective
1.
of, existing in, or produced by nature: natural science, natural cliffs
2.
in accordance with human nature: it is only natural to want to be liked
3.
as is normal or to be expected; ordinary or logical: the natural course of events
4.
not acquired; innate: a natural gift for sport
5.
being so through innate qualities: a natural leader
6.
not supernatural or strange: natural phenomena
7.
not constrained or affected; genuine or spontaneous
8.
not artificially dyed or coloured: a natural blonde
9.
following or resembling nature or life; lifelike: she looked more natural without her make-up
10.
not affected by man or civilization; uncultivated; wild: in the natural state this animal is not ferocious
11.
being or made from organic material; not synthetic: a natural fibre like cotton
12.
illegitimate; born out of wedlock
13.
not adopted but rather related by blood: her natural parents
14.
(music)
  1. not sharp or flat
  2. (postpositive) denoting a note that is neither sharp nor flat: B natural
  3. (of a key or scale) containing no sharps or flats Compare flat1 (sense 23), sharp (sense 12)
15.
(music) of or relating to a trumpet, horn, etc, without valves or keys, on which only notes of the harmonic series of the keynote can be obtained
16.
determined by inborn conviction: natural justice, natural rights
17.
(cards)
  1. (of a card) not a joker or wild card
  2. (of a canasta or sequence) containing no wild cards
  3. (of a bid in bridge) describing genuine values; not conventional
18.
based on the principles and findings of human reason and what is to be learned of God from nature rather than on revelation: natural religion
noun
19.
(informal) a person or thing regarded as certain to qualify for success, selection, etc: the horse was a natural for first place
20.
(music)
  1. Also called (US) cancel. an accidental cancelling a previous sharp or flat Usual symbol ♮
  2. a note affected by this accidental Compare flat1 (sense 35), sharp (sense 19)
21.
(pontoon) the combination of an ace with a ten or court card when dealt to a player as his or her first two cards
22.
(obsolete) an imbecile; idiot
Derived Forms
naturalness, noun
Word Origin and History for natural
adj.

c.1300, naturel, "of one's inborn character; hereditary, by birth;" early 14c. as "of the world of nature (especially as opposed to man)," from Old French naturel "of nature, conforming to nature; by birth," and directly from Latin naturalis "by birth, according to nature," from natura "nature" (see nature).

From late 15c. as "not miraculous, in conformity with nature." Meaning "easy, free from affectation" is attested from c.1600. Of things, "not artificially created," c.1600. As a euphemism for "illegitimate, bastard" (of children), it is first recorded c.1400, on notion of blood kinship (but not legal status).

Natural science is from late 14c.; natural law is from early 15c. Natural order "apparent order in nature" is from 1690s. Natural childbirth first attested 1933. Natural life, usually in reference to the duration of life, is from late 15c. Natural history is from 1560s (see history). To die of natural causes is from 1570s.

n.

"person with a natural gift or talent," 1925, originally in prizefighting, from natural (adj.). In Middle English, the word as a noun meant "natural capacity, physical ability or power" (early 14c.), and it was common in sense "a native of a place" in Shakespeare's day. Also in 17c., "a mistress."

Slang definitions & phrases for natural

natural

noun
  1. A first throw of the dice that yields seven or eleven (1897+ fr crapshooting)
  2. Something or someone that is obviously and perfectly fitting; just the thing: A novel which looks like a natural for Lassie (1925+ fr prizefighting)
  3. A jail sentence of seven years (1940s+ Prison)
  4. afro (1960s+ Black)

natural in Technology


An integrated 4GL from Software AG, Germany. The menu-driven version is SUPER/NATURAL.
Natural 2 is a major upgrade to Natural 1.
Version 2.1.7 in the MVS environment (June 1995, also available for Unix).
Natural works with DB2 and various other databases, but Natural and Adabas normally go together. There are many products available in the "Natural" family, including SuperNatural, Natural for Windows, Entire Connection (enables up/downloading and interaction with Excel) and Esperant.
(1995-11-14)

Idioms and Phrases with natural

natural

see under big as life