artifact
or ar·te·fact
[ahr-tuh-fakt]
- any object made by human beings, especially with a view to subsequent use.
- a handmade object, as a tool, or the remains of one, as a shard of pottery, characteristic of an earlier time or cultural stage, especially such an object found at an archaeological excavation.
- any mass-produced, usually inexpensive object reflecting contemporary society or popular culture: artifacts of the pop rock generation.
- a substance or structure not naturally present in the matter being observed but formed by artificial means, as during preparation of a microscope slide.
- a spurious observation or result arising from preparatory or investigative procedures.
- any feature that is not naturally present but is a product of an extrinsic agent, method, or the like: statistical artifacts that make the inflation rate seem greater than it is.
Show More
Origin of artifact
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018
Examples from the Web for artifactual
Historical Examples
Speculation goes as far as to suggest that these human beings became increasingly dependent on artifactual means of notation.
The Civilization of IlliteracyMihai Nadin
artifact
- a variant spelling of artefact
Show More
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition
© William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
Word Origin and History for artifactual
artifact
n.
1821, artefact, "anything made by human art," from Italian artefatto, from Latin arte "by skill" (ablative of ars "art;" see art (n.)) + factum "thing made," from facere "to make, do" (see factitious). The spelling with -i- is by 1884, by influence of the Latin stem. Archaeological application dates from 1890.
Show More
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
artifact
- A structure or substance not normally present but produced by an external agent or action, such as a structure seen in a microscopic specimen after fixation that is not present in the living tissue.
- A skin lesion produced or perpetuated by self-inflicted action.
Show More
The American Heritage® Stedman's Medical Dictionary
Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company.
artifact
- An object produced or shaped by human craft, especially a tool, weapon, or ornament of archaeological or historical interest.
- An artificial product or effect observed in a natural system, especially one introduced by the technology used in scientific investigation or by experimental error.
Show More
The American Heritage® Science Dictionary
Copyright © 2011. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.