lusus naturae
Americannoun
noun
Etymology
Origin of lusus naturae
First recorded in 1655–65, lusus naturae is from Latin lūsus nātūrae “a jest of nature”
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
From the loathsome lusus naturae of behemoth horror series to the sprawling cosmopolis of complex management simulators, video games often feature wrenched contortions of the natural world as core tenets in environmental design.
From The Verge ● Feb. 13, 2020
The gossips all turn from the task of nibbling one another, and the character of the lusus naturae becomes public property.
From The Mirror of Literature, Amusement, and Instruction Volume 14, No. 404, December 12, 1829 by Various
Because the Partholanians represent the first human race, but the Fomoroh or 'Water-men' were unhuman, and a kind of lusus naturae.
From The Crest-Wave of Evolution A Course of Lectures in History, Given to the Graduates' Class in the Raja-Yoga College, Point Loma, in the College-Year 1918-19 by Morris, Kenneth
I am a philosopher, my child, and a happy philosopher would be a lusus naturae, a freak, a subject for a Barnum & Bailey Show.
From The Morals of Marcus Ordeyne : a Novel by Locke, William John
If there is in fact no such, he is, in his high attainment, almost a lusus naturae.
From The Brothers' War by Reed, John Calvin
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
