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In musical notation, what does a natural symbol cancel out?

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natural

American  

[nach-er-uhl, nach-ruhl] / ˈnætʃ ər əl, ˈnætʃ rəl /

adjective

1. existing in or formed by nature.

   The river was spanned by a natural rock bridge.

   Antonyms:

   artificial

2. based on the state or behavior of things in nature; constituted by nature.

   Growth is a natural process.

3. of or relating to nature or the universe.

   The natural beauty of this forest is remarkable.

4. of, relating to, or occupied with the study of natural science.

   The discovery of the laws of motion occurred through conducting natural experiments.

5. (of land) in a state of nature; uncultivated.

6. (of plants) growing spontaneously, without being planted or tended by humans.

7. having undergone little or no processing and containing no chemical additives.

   The restaurant is famous for serving only natural food made with only natural ingredients.

8. relating to hair, especially Black hair, that has not been straightened, permed, or otherwise altered in texture.

9. of, relating to, or proper to the nature or essential constitution.

   Her natural athletic ability had brought her a wonderful basketball career.

10. having the specified character by nature; natural-born.

    You can tell from his fun, interesting classes that he's a natural teacher.

11. proper to the circumstances of the case.

    The loss of his social circle was a natural result of his greed.

12. free from affectation or constraint.

    The celebrity had a charming and natural manner.

    Synonyms:

    unmannered, genuine, unaffected, spontaneous

13. arising easily or spontaneously.

    The mayor is known for his natural courtesy to strangers.

14. conforming with the nature or character of things.

    That sentence may be grammatical, but it is not natural English.

15. in accordance with or conforming to the ordinary course of things.

    It was natural that he should hit back after being punched.

16. (of a death) happening in the ordinary or usual course of things, without the intervention of accident, violence, etc.

17. based upon the innate moral feeling of humankind.

    natural justice.

18. having or showing feelings, such as affection, gratitude, or kindness, considered part of basic human nature.

19. true to or closely imitating nature.

    It's a very natural portrait of her.

20. not tinted or colored; undyed.

21. not treated, tanned, refined, etc.; in its original or raw state.

    natural wood;

    natural cowhide.

22. being or having a pale tannish or grayish-yellow color, as many woods and untreated animal skins.

23. related by blood rather than by adoption.

24. born of parents who are not married to each other; illegitimate.

    a natural son.

25. having a real or physical existence, as opposed to one that is spiritual, intellectual, fictitious, etc.

26. (of theology) based on what is learned from nature rather than on revelation.

27. unenlightened or unregenerate.

    the natural man.

28. Music.

    1. neither sharp nor flat.

    2. changed in pitch by the sign ♮.

29. (of a horn or trumpet) having neither side holes nor valves.

30. Cards.

    1. being a card other than a wild card or joker.

    2. (of a set or sequence of cards) containing no wild cards.

31. null nat (in role-playing games) designating a specified roll of the dice or die that can be taken at face value, not modified by any rule that adds to or subtracts from its value.

    The monster I was attacking rolled a natural 20, landing a critical hit that took out most of my health.

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noun

• naturals
  plural

1. any person or thing that is or is likely or certain to be very suitable to and successful in an endeavor without much training or difficulty.

   You're a natural at this—you picked it up so fast!

2. Music.

   1. a white key on a piano, organ, or the like.

   2. the sign ♮, placed before a note, canceling the effect of a previous sharp or flat.

   3. a note affected by a ♮, or a tone thus represented.

3. a natural substance or a product made with such a substance.

   This boot conditioner is an ointment containing mink oil and other naturals.

4. Cards. blackjack.

5. Older Use. Afro.

6. (in craps) a winning combination of seven or eleven made on the first cast.

7. Archaic. a person with an intellectual disability.

natural British  

/ ˈnætʃrəl, -tʃərəl /

adjective

1. of, existing in, or produced by nature

   natural science

   natural cliffs

2. in accordance with human nature

   it is only natural to want to be liked

3. as is normal or to be expected; ordinary or logical

   the natural course of events

4. not acquired; innate

   a natural gift for sport

5. being so through innate qualities

   a natural leader

6. not supernatural or strange

   natural phenomena

7. not constrained or affected; genuine or spontaneous

8. not artificially dyed or coloured

   a natural blonde

9. following or resembling nature or life; lifelike

   she looked more natural without her make-up

10. not affected by man or civilization; uncultivated; wild

    in the natural state this animal is not ferocious

11. being or made from organic material; not synthetic

    a natural fibre like cotton

12. illegitimate; born out of wedlock

13. not adopted but rather related by blood

    her natural parents

14. music

    1. not sharp or flat

    2. (postpositive) denoting a note that is neither sharp nor flat

       B natural

    3. (of a key or scale) containing no sharps or flats Compare flat 1 sharp

15. music of or relating to a trumpet, horn, etc, without valves or keys, on which only notes of the harmonic series of the keynote can be obtained

16. determined by inborn conviction

    natural justice

    natural rights

17. cards

    1. (of a card) not a joker or wild card

    2. (of a canasta or sequence) containing no wild cards

    3. (of a bid in bridge) describing genuine values; not conventional

18. based on the principles and findings of human reason and what is to be learned of God from nature rather than on revelation

    natural religion

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noun

1. informal a person or thing regarded as certain to qualify for success, selection, etc

   the horse was a natural for first place

2. music

   1. Also called (US): cancel.  an accidental cancelling a previous sharp or flat

   2. a note affected by this accidental Compare flat 1 sharp

3. pontoon the combination of an ace with a ten or court card when dealt to a player as his or her first two cards

4. obsolete an imbecile; idiot

natural Idioms  

1. see under big as life.

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Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• antinaturalness
  noun
• hypernaturalness
  noun
• naturalness
  noun
• nonnaturalness
  noun
• subnaturalness
  noun
• antinatural
  adjective
• hypernatural
  adjective
• nonnatural
  adjective
• prenatural
  adjective
• quasi-natural
  adjective
• subnatural
  adjective
• transnatural
  adjective
• naturally
  adverb

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• naturals
  plural

Etymology

Origin of natural

First recorded in 1300–50; Middle English, from Latin nātūrālis; equivalent to nature + -al ¹; replacing Middle English naturel, from Middle French, from Latin, as above

Explanation

Natural describes something that comes from nature, rather than being man-made. Your healthy friend who only eats natural food will probably choose carrots instead of potato chips for a snack. The adjective natural is a common word with a lot of meanings. It describes anything that comes from nature, but it also means "inborn" when you describe your basketball-star friend as a natural athlete. You can also use it to talk about someone being at ease ("he tried to act natural when the police passed by") or to mean "inevitable," as when you say, "It's only natural that those two ended up getting married."

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

natural naturals

The biggest impact of this natural phenomenon on global temperatures is expected to hit over the coming year, meaning the current run of records may have further to go.

From BBC ● Sep. 10, 2026

U.S. natural gas futures started the week lower with the market bracing for cooler late-September weather that will reduce power-sector demand.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 10, 2026

Growers had to harvest exceptionally early this year as extreme heat sped sugar buildup -- and hence natural alcohol production -- in the grapes, according to the Comite Champagne industry association.

From Barron's ● Sep. 9, 2026

As they invest across multiple commodity sectors, natural resource funds tend to be lower risk than pure-play energy funds.

From MarketWatch ● Sep. 9, 2026

There was a natural role for a blue-chip corporation with the highest credit rating to stand in the middle of swaps and long-term options and the other risk-spawning innovations.

From "The Big Short" by Michael Lewis

He said people in the UK could mitigate the negative effects of this seasonal breakdown by rethinking "how we manage our naturals areas", including planting new species that are better accustomed to these extreme swings.

From BBC ● May 1, 2025

Yet she and Chambers are naturals with visual content, as demonstrated by the extremely meme-able “Chaise Longue” clip, in which they wear long white dresses and oversized sun hats for some delightfully inscrutable reason.

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 12, 2022

Cooked grains are naturals in warm or cold salads, as in Wheat Berry and Lentil Salad With Carrots, Parsley and Harissa, pictured above.

From Washington Post ● Sep. 12, 2022

Charli, with her dancing, and Dixie, who studied violin and piano, were naturals at these casual pastiches.

From New York Times ● Aug. 28, 2021

In a C major chord, for example, that would be any C naturals, E naturals, and G naturals.

From "Understanding Basic Music Theory" by Catherine Schmidt-Jones and Russel Jones

Related Words

• common
• essential
• innate
• instinctive
• legitimate
• logical
• ordinary
• reasonable
• usual