synthetic

[sin-thet-ik]

adjective

1. of, pertaining to, proceeding by, or involving synthesis (analytic ).

2. noting or pertaining to compounds formed through a chemical process by human agency, as opposed to those of natural origin.

   synthetic vitamins; synthetic fiber.

3. (of a language) characterized by a relatively widespread use of affixes, rather than separate words, to express syntactic relationships.

   Latin is a synthetic language, while English is analytic.

4. Logic.,  Also synthetical. of or relating to a noncontradictory proposition in which the predicate is not included in, or entailed by, the subject.

5. not real or genuine; artificial; feigned.

   a synthetic chuckle at a poor joke.

   Synonyms: sham, counterfeit, phony, fake

6. Jewelry.

   1. noting a gem mineral manufactured so as to be physically, chemically, and optically identical with the mineral as found in nature.

   2. (not in technical use) noting a gem mineral manufactured and pigmented in imitation of a natural gemstone of that name.

noun

1. something made by a synthetic, or chemical, process.

2. synthetics.

   1. substances or products made by chemical synthesis, as plastics or artificial fibers.

   2. the science or industry concerned with such products.

synthetic

/ sɪnˈθɛtɪk /

adjective

1. (of a substance or material) made artificially by chemical reaction

2. not genuine; insincere

   synthetic compassion

3. denoting languages, such as Latin, whose morphology is characterized by synthesis Compare polysynthetic agglutinative analytic

4. philosophy

   1. (of a proposition) having a truth-value that is not determined solely by virtue of the meanings of the words, as in all men are arrogant

   2. contingent Compare a posteriori empirical

noun

1. a synthetic substance or material

synthetic

1. Produced artificially, especially in a laboratory or other man-made environment. Nylon is a synthetic chemical compound.

Other Word Forms

• synthetically adverb
• nonsynthetic adjective
• nonsynthetical adjective
• nonsynthetically adverb
• unsynthetic adjective
• unsynthetically adverb

Word History and Origins

Origin of synthetic¹

1690–1700; < New Latin syntheticus < Greek synthetikós, equivalent to synthet ( ós ) placed together, verbid of syntithénai to put together ( syn- syn- + the-, stem of tithénai to put, place + -tos verbid suffix) + -ikos -ic

Word History and Origins

Origin of synthetic¹

C17: from New Latin syntheticus, from Greek sunthetikos expert in putting together, from suntithenai to put together; see _synthesis

Example Sentences

"As we look to the future, humans will want to rethink how we make materials to support our synthetic lifestyle of 8 billion people on Earth," said Moore.

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But many of their earlier designs depend on synthetic catalysts or inorganic semiconductors, which either degrade quickly, waste much of the solar spectrum, or contain toxic elements such as lead.

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“Today, a mix of real and synthetic data is being used, gathered from human demonstrations, teleoperation sessions and staged environments,” he said.

Read more on Los Angeles Times

That synthetic opioid, though, is produced in Mexico with Chinese precursors.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

The president has said the U.S. expects to lower tariffs on China in exchange for cooperation in cracking down on the export of chemicals used to make the synthetic opioid.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

Related Words

• fabricated 
• manufactured www.thesaurus.com