innate

[ih-neyt, in-eyt]

adjective

existing in one from birth; inborn; native: innate musical talent.

inherent in the essential character of something: an innate defect in the hypothesis.

originating in or arising from the intellect or the constitution of the mind, rather than learned through experience: an innate knowledge of good and evil.

Origin of innate

1375–1425; late Middle English < Latin innātus inborn, past participle of innāscī to be born, arise, equivalent to in- in-² + nāscī to be born; cf. nascent, nativity

Related formsin·nate·ly, adverbin·nate·ness, nounun·in·nate, adjectiveun·in·nate·ly, adverbun·in·nate·ness, noun

Can be confusedinchoate innate (see synonym study at the current entry)

Synonyms for innate

1. natural, congenital. Innate, inborn, congenital, hereditary describe qualities, characteristics, or possessions acquired before or at the time of birth. Innate, of Latin origin, and inborn, a native English word, share the literal basic sense “existing at the time of birth,” and they are interchangeable in most contexts: innate (or inborn ) stodginess, agility, gracefulness. Congenital refers most often to characteristics acquired during fetal development, especially defects or undesirable conditions: a congenital deformity; congenital blindness. Hereditary describes qualities or things passed on from ancestors, either through the genes or by social or legal means: Hemophilia is a hereditary condition; a hereditary title.

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for innately

Contemporary Examples of innately

But Diana died, and her sons—understandably, given the ruthless focus on her—innately distrust the media.
If Kate Middleton’s Butt Could Speak: It’s Time Royal Princesses Led Visible, Voluble Public Lives
Tim Teeman
June 4, 2014
These three actors, Australian-bred and innately brooding, comprise the fabulously Hemsworth brothers.
Luke, Chris, and Liam: Your Guide to the Fabulous Hemsworth Brothers
Anna Klassen
August 15, 2013
He may hail from Kazakhstan, but Borat innately understands the American dream.
Sacha Baron Cohen's 9 Wildest Moments
The Daily Beast Video
July 9, 2009

Historical Examples of innately

Nor stinted aught with larger fate, For that she was innately great.
The Atlantic Monthly, Vol. 10, No. 58, August, 1862
Various
For surely he must have known, he had known, what Vere and Gaspare innately knew.
A Spirit in Prison
Robert Hichens
With all his blemishes and defects he was innately too much a gentleman to descend to this.
Davenport Dunn, Volume 2 (of 2)
Charles James Lever
He is innately an adventurer; he seeks adventure and often finds it.
The Grizzly
Enos A. Mills
The man who cannot revere what is noble is innately degraded.
Talks on the study of literature.
Arlo Bates

British Dictionary definitions for innately

innate

adjective

existing in a person or animal from birth; congenital; inborn

being an essential part of the character of a person or thing

instinctive; not learnedinnate capacities

botany (of anthers) joined to the filament by the base only

(in rationalist philosophy) (of ideas) present in the mind before any experience and knowable by pure reason

Derived Formsinnately, adverbinnateness, noun

Word Origin for innate

C15: from Latin, from innascī to be born in, from nascī to be born

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 innately

innate

adj.

early 15c., from Late Latin innatus "inborn," past participle of innasci "to be born in, originate in," from in- "in" (see in- (2)) + nasci "to be born" (Old Latin gnasci; see genus). Related: Innately.

innately in Medicine

innate

[ĭ-nāt′, ĭn′āt′]

adj.

Possessed at birth; inborn.

Related formsin•nate′ness n.