synthetic

[sin-thet-ik]

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adjective

of, pertaining to, proceeding by, or involving synthesis (opposed to analytic).

noting or pertaining to compounds formed through a chemical process by human agency, as opposed to those of natural origin: synthetic vitamins; synthetic fiber.

(of a language) characterized by a relatively widespread use of affixes, rather than separate words, to express syntactic relationships: Latin is a synthetic language, while English is analytic.Compare analytic(def 3), polysynthetic(def 1).

Also syn·thet·i·cal. Logic. of or relating to a noncontradictory proposition in which the predicate is not included in, or entailed by, the subject.

not real or genuine; artificial; feigned: a synthetic chuckle at a poor joke.

Jewelry.

noting a gem mineral manufactured so as to be physically, chemically, and optically identical with the mineral as found in nature.
(not in technical use) noting a gem mineral manufactured and pigmented in imitation of a natural gemstone of that name.

noun

something made by a synthetic, or chemical, process.

synthetics.

substances or products made by chemical synthesis, as plastics or artificial fibers.
the science or industry concerned with such products.

Origin of synthetic

1690–1700; < New Latin syntheticus < Greek synthetikós, equivalent to synthet(ós) placed together, verbid of syntithénai to put together (syn- syn- + the-, stem of tithénai to put, place + -tos verbid suffix) + -ikos -ic

Related formssyn·thet·i·cal·ly, adverbnon·syn·thet·ic, adjectivenon·syn·thet·i·cal, adjectivenon·syn·thet·i·cal·ly, adverbun·syn·thet·ic, adjectiveun·syn·thet·i·cal·ly, adverb

Synonyms for synthetic

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5. fake, phony, counterfeit, sham.

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

Related Words for synthetic

manufactured, fabricated, ersatz, phony, makeshift, fake, plastic, mock, counterfeit, factitious, hokey, made, unnatural, false, constructed

Examples from the Web for synthetic

Contemporary Examples of synthetic

One key ingredient of the stuff: Propylene glycol, a synthetic liquid that absorbs water.
Europeans Recall Fireball Whiskey Over a Sweetener Also Used in Antifreeze
Tim Mak
October 28, 2014
The Illinois legislation does not include bioplastics like PHA, defining the banned microplastics to be of the synthetic type.
Your Favorite Facewash Is Hurting Nemo
Alexa C. Kurzius
June 18, 2014
But the arguments over drug testing may cease to matter if the synthetic drug epidemic continues.
Are We Addicted to Drug Testing?
Abby Haglage
May 27, 2014
With more than 300 synthetic cannabinoids in use today, drug-testing companies are struggling to keep up with the new varieties.
Are We Addicted to Drug Testing?
Abby Haglage
May 27, 2014
Scientists at the Scripps Research Institute produced the first living organism with synthetic bacteria this May.
Synthetic DNA: The New Drug Makers?
Elizabeth Lopatto
May 18, 2014

Historical Examples of synthetic

Synthetic foods there were for at least a hundred Martian days.
Astounding Stories of Super-Science, November, 1930
Various
Genius is synthetic, elliptic, sudden, but always clear and sure.
The Goat-gland Transplantation
Sydney B. Flower
Phillips had a logical mind and a capacity for synthetic induction.
The Island Mystery
George A. Birmingham
No mention now of the Eurasian exemplar, the synthetic "over-man."
Dreamers of the Ghetto
I. Zangwill
He proves the importance of synthetic registration in peoples.
Adventures in the Arts
Marsden Hartley

British Dictionary definitions for synthetic

synthetic

adjective Also: synthetical

(of a substance or material) made artificially by chemical reaction

not genuine; insinceresynthetic compassion

denoting languages, such as Latin, whose morphology is characterized by synthesisCompare polysynthetic, agglutinative (def. 2), analytic (def. 3)

philosophy

(of a proposition) having a truth-value that is not determined solely by virtue of the meanings of the words, as in all men are arrogant
contingentCompare a posteriori, empirical

noun

a synthetic substance or material

Derived Formssynthetically, adverb

Word Origin for synthetic

C17: from New Latin syntheticus, from Greek sunthetikos expert in putting together, from suntithenai to put together; see synthesis

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 synthetic

adj.

1690s, as a term in logic, from French synthétique (17c.), from Modern Latin syntheticus, from Greek synthetikos, from synthetos, past participle of syntithenai (see synthesis). From 1874 in reference to products or materials made artificially by chemical synthesis; hence "artificial" (1930).

synthetic in Medicine