preternaturally

American  

[pree-ter-nach-er-uh-lee, -nach-ruh-lee, pre-] / ˌpri tərˈnætʃ ər ə li, -ˈnætʃ rə li, ˌprɛ- /

adverb

1. in a way or to a degree that is beyond the ordinary course of nature; exceptionally or abnormally.

   Her voice, preternaturally deep, resonated off the walls like a terrible storm.

2. in a supernatural way or to a supernatural degree.

   The demons in this movie are of course preternaturally strong.

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Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• unpreternaturally
  adverb

Etymology

Origin of preternaturally

preternatural ( def. ) + -ly

Explanation

When something happens preternaturally, it's extremely unusual — you could even say it's strange and mysterious. If your dog is preternaturally smart, you may feel like she understands every word you say. This adverb is commonly used to describe things that happen in a bizarre or extraordinary way, particularly if they're hard to explain. A magician may cause your friend to appear to hover preternaturally above the ground, for example. Sometimes its use signals that you can't quite believe your eyes: "Those redwood trees were preternaturally enormous!" The Latin root is praeter naturam, "beyond nature."

Example Sentences

Preternaturally artistic, he drew the concern of his parents at an early age.

From Los Angeles Times • Jul. 7, 2019

Preternaturally gifted composer Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart lived here and they don’t let you forget it.

From Salon • Jul. 26, 2015

Preternaturally pleasant: mostly sunny and dry, with a high of 78.

From New York Times • Jun. 17, 2015

Preternaturally poised three years earlier, as the teen murderess in Peter Jackson’s Heavenly Creatures, she had essayed classical roles in Sense and Sensibility and Jude and as Ophelia in Kenneth Branagh’s Hamlet.

From Time • Apr. 4, 2012

Preternaturally bright they were, with the breathless look that betrays the ebbing shore of life, yet full of eager desire to remain.

From In Wild Rose Time by Douglas, Amanda M.