autonomously

American  

[aw-ton-uh-muhs-lee] / ɔˈtɒn ə məs li /

adverb

1. in a way that is self-governing or free of outside control; independently.

   The ideal candidate will be able to work autonomously and without supervision.

2. with little or no human control or intervention.

   We have developed a service robot that operates autonomously, in concert with a network of devices in its environment.

3. Biology.

   1. as an independent organism.

      Viruses, on the boundary between living and nonliving, cannot autonomously reproduce but require the biochemistry and structure of a host cell.

   2. naturally or spontaneously, without cultivation.

      They organized a work day to get rid of the plants growing wildly, autonomously, and unwantedly all around the building.

---

Other Word Forms

• nonautonomously
  adverb

Etymology

Origin of autonomously

autonomous ( def. ) + -ly

Example Sentences

Smaller AI models from Mistral could be built into weapons systems or other defence equipment, such as drones, that can be more effective if able to act autonomously.

From Barron's • May 28, 2026

On a Reddit-style social media site called Moltbook, Moltbots seem to autonomously interact with one another, discussing everything from poetry to unionization.

From Slate • May 25, 2026

With the LiveRamp acquisition, Publicis aims to tap into growing demand from companies that are looking to transform their businesses through the deployment of AI-powered agents that can perform tasks autonomously.

From The Wall Street Journal • May 18, 2026

This is an autonomously governed region "riddled with active smuggling networks", according to a 2024 report by the international affairs think tank, Chatham House.

From BBC • May 12, 2026

But a DNA double helix cannot autonomously make a copy of itself; otherwise, it might replicate without self-control.

From "The Gene" by Siddhartha Mukherjee

Related Words

• freely
• individually
• separately