nature

[ ney-cher ]

/ ˈneɪ tʃər /

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR nature ON THESAURUS.COM

noun

the material world, especially as surrounding humankind and existing independently of human activities.

the natural world as it exists without human beings or civilization: In nature, wild dogs hunt in packs.

the elements of the natural world, as mountains, trees, animals, or rivers: The abandoned power plant was reclaimed by nature, covered in overgrowth and home to feral animals.

natural scenery: Tourists at the resort are surrounded by nature.

the universe, with all its phenomena: Conservation of energy is a universal law of nature.

the sum total of the forces at work throughout the universe.

reality, as distinguished from any effect of art: a portrait true to nature.

the particular combination of qualities belonging to a person, animal, thing, or class by birth, origin, or constitution; native or inherent character: human nature.

the instincts or inherent tendencies directing conduct: a man of good nature.

character, kind, or sort: two books of the same nature.

characteristic disposition; temperament: a self-willed nature; an evil nature.

the original, natural, uncivilized condition of humankind.

the biological functions or the urges to satisfy their requirements.

a primitive, wild condition; an uncultivated state.

a simple, uncluttered mode of life without the conveniences or distractions of civilization: a return to nature.

(initial capital letter, italics) a prose work (1836), by Ralph Waldo Emerson, expounding transcendentalism.

Theology. the moral state as unaffected by grace.

Nearby words

Idioms

by nature, as a result of inborn or inherent qualities; innately: She is by nature a kindhearted person.

in a state of nature,

in an uncivilized or uncultured condition.
without clothes; nude; naked.

of/in the nature of, having the character or qualities of: in the nature of an apology.

Origin of nature

1200–50; Middle English natur(e) < Old French < Latin nātūra conditions of birth, quality, character, natural order, world, equivalent to nāt(us) (past participle of nāscī to be born) + -ūra -ure

Related formsna·ture·like, adjectivean·ti·na·ture, adjective, noun

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

Examples from the Web for nature

The “nature of the crime” was too serious to release him, they said.
His First Day Out Of Jail After 40 Years: Adjusting To Life Outside|Justin Rohrlich|January 3, 2015|DAILY BEAST
That explanation is believable…but increasingly less so when you hear Jay talk about the nature of his relationship with Adnan.
The Deal With Serial’s Jay? He’s Pissed Off, Mucks Up Our Timeline|Emily Shire|December 31, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Along the river, crumbling remnants of an active trading hub are overtaken by nature.
The Congo's Forgotten Colonial Getaway|Nina Strochlic|December 18, 2014|DAILY BEAST
“Heavy water”, or D2O, is even less common in nature, though nuclear engineers make and use it in some reactors.
Are Comets the Origin of Earth’s Oceans?|Matthew R. Francis|December 14, 2014|DAILY BEAST

The second deals with the nature of the love affair that is central to the script.
Alfred Hitchcock’s Fade to Black: The Great Director’s Final Days|David Freeman|December 13, 2014|DAILY BEAST
It was his nature to be happy and jolly; he could not help radiating sunshine all the time.
The Boy Scouts of the Naval Reserve|Robert Shaler
Never surely was man better cut out by nature for the post of convent physician!
Letters of Two Brides|Honore de Balzac
Sufficient has been said to prove the superiority of spiritual life over the whole aspects and manifestations of Nature.
An Interpretation of Rudolf Eucken's Philosophy|W. Tudor Jones
Time and accident had changed him; moreover, he could bring art to the assistance of nature.
Lysbeth|H. Rider Haggard
He warily sounded a nature that could be warped to the exigencies of any plan, provided it was profitable.
Sons of the Soil|Honore de Balzac

British Dictionary definitions for nature

nature

/ (ˈneɪtʃə) /

noun

the fundamental qualities of a person or thing; identity or essential character

(often capital, esp when personified) the whole system of the existence, arrangement, forces, and events of all physical life that are not controlled by man

all natural phenomena and plant and animal life, as distinct from man and his creations

a wild primitive state untouched by man or civilization

natural unspoilt scenery or countryside

disposition or temperament

tendencies, desires, or instincts governing behaviour

the normal biological needs or urges of the body

sort; kind; character

the real appearance of a person or thinga painting very true to nature

accepted standards of basic morality or behaviour

biology the complement of genetic material that partly determines the structure of an organism; genotypeCompare nurture (def. 3)

Irish sympathy and fondness for one's own people or native placeshe is full of nature

against nature unnatural or immoral

by nature essentially or innately

call of nature informal, euphemistic, or jocular the need to urinate or defecate

from nature using natural models in drawing, painting, etc

in the nature of or of the nature of essentially the same as; by way of

Word Origin for nature

C13: via Old French from Latin nātūra, from nātus, past participle of 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 nature

nature

late 13c., "restorative powers of the body, bodily processes; powers of growth;" from Old French nature "nature, being, principle of life; character, essence," from Latin natura "course of things; natural character, constitution, quality; the universe," literally "birth," from natus "born," past participle of nasci "to be born," from PIE *gene- "to give birth, beget" (see genus).

From late 14c. as "creation, the universe;" also "heredity, birth, hereditary circumstance; essential qualities, innate disposition" (e.g. human nature); "nature personified, Mother Nature." Specifically as "material world beyond human civilization or society" from 1660s. Nature and nurture have been contrasted since 1874.

Nature should be avoided in such vague expressions as 'a lover of nature,' 'poems about nature.' Unless more specific statements follow, the reader cannot tell whether the poems have to do with natural scenery, rural life, the sunset, the untouched wilderness, or the habits of squirrels." [Strunk & White, "The Elements of Style," 3rd ed., 1979]

Science definitions for nature