spontaneously

[spon-tey-nee-uhs-lee]

adverb

1. naturally, without premeditation, prompting, or planning.

   The author recounts how a fully-fledged exchange market economy emerged spontaneously in his POW camp.

   These answers were given spontaneously to an open-ended question that did not offer response options.

2. in an impulsive way.

   It was so cold the other night that I spontaneously booked a trip to Turks and Caicos.

3. by a natural process or from an internal force or cause.

   A calf should normally stand spontaneously within 60–90 minutes of its birth.

   The symptoms resolved spontaneously within 6 months of onset.

Other Word Forms

• nonspontaneously adverb
• semispontaneously adverb
• subspontaneously adverb
• unspontaneously adverb

Word History and Origins

Origin of spontaneously¹

spontaneous ( def. ) + -ly

Example Sentences

Raymond chose his poems spontaneously on the day, while I was sitting on the floor surrounded by a few small resonant instruments.

From Los Angeles Times

The protests emerged spontaneously in some of Luanda's more populous and poorer neighbourhoods, where some residents lack access to basic sanitation as well as other essential infrastructure.

From BBC

Later, as he digs into the making and meaning of his movie, he’ll relax and the words will spontaneously flow.

From Los Angeles Times

Either the liver ruptured because of a needle or it ruptured spontaneously.

From BBC

It's still not clear why the outbreak spontaneously ceased and it hasn't resurged over the past decade.

From BBC

Related Words

• automatically 
• immediately 
• unconsciously