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6 dictionary results for: Artificial
Dictionary.com Unabridged (v 1.1) - Cite This Source - Share This
ar·ti·fi·cial 
[ahr-tuh-fish-uhl] Pronunciation Key
[ahr-tuh-fish-uhl] Pronunciation Key –adjective
| 1. | made by human skill; produced by humans (opposed to natural): artificial flowers. |
| 2. | imitation; simulated; sham: artificial vanilla flavoring. |
| 3. | lacking naturalness or spontaneity; forced; contrived; feigned: an artificial smile. |
| 4. | full of affectation; affected; stilted: artificial manners; artificial speech. |
| 5. | made without regard to the particular needs of a situation, person, etc.; imposed arbitrarily; unnatural: artificial rules for dormitory residents. |
| 6. | Biology. based on arbitrary, superficial characteristics rather than natural, organic relationships: an artificial system of classification. |
| 7. | Jewelry. manufactured to resemble a natural gem, in chemical composition or appearance. Compare assembled, imitation (def. 11), synthetic (def. 6). |
Dictionary.com Unabridged (v 1.1)
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2006.
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2006.
American Heritage Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This
| ar·ti·fi·cial
(är'tə-fĭsh'əl) Pronunciation Key
adj.
[Middle English, from Old French, from Latin artificiālis, belonging to art, from artificium, craftsmanship; see artifice.] ar'ti·fi'ci·al'i·ty (-fĭsh'ē-āl'ĭ-tē) n., ar'ti·fi'cial·ly adv. Synonyms: These adjectives refer to what is made by humans rather than natural in origin. Artificial is broadest in meaning and connotation: an artificial sweetener; artificial flowers. |
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The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2006 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2006 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
Online Etymology Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This
artificial
artificial
c.1382, "made by man" (opposite of natural), from O.Fr. artificial, from L. artificialis "of or belonging to art," from artificium (see artifice). Another early use was in the phrase artificial day "part of the day from sunrise to sunset" (c.1386). Artificial intelligence first attested 1956.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
WordNet - Cite This Source - Share This
| artificial | |
adjective | |
| 1. | contrived by art rather than nature; "artificial flowers"; "artificial flavoring"; "an artificial diamond"; "artificial fibers"; "artificial sweeteners" [ant: natural] |
| 2. | artificially formal; "that artificial humility that her husband hated"; "contrived coyness"; "a stilted letter of acknowledgment"; "when people try to correct their speech they develop a stilted pronunciation" |
| 3. | not arising from natural growth or characterized by vital processes |
WordNet® 3.0, © 2006 by Princeton University.
Merriam-Webster's Dictionary of Law - Cite This Source - Share This
Main Entry: ar·ti·fi·cial
Function: adjective
1 a : made by humans <artificial accessions> —compare NATURAL b : caused or produced by a human and esp. social or political agencyartificial price advantage>
2 : arising through operation of law —ar·ti·fi·cial·ly adverb
Main Entry: ar·ti·fi·cial
Function: adjective
1 a : made by humans <artificial accessions> —compare NATURAL b : caused or produced by a human and esp. social or political agency
2 : arising through operation of law —ar·ti·fi·cial·ly adverb
Merriam-Webster's Dictionary of Law, © 1996 Merriam-Webster, Inc.
Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This
Artificial
Ar`ti*fi"cial\, a. [L. artificialis, fr. artificium: cf. F. artificiel. See Artifice.]1. Made or contrived by art; produced or modified by human skill and labor, in opposition to natural; as, artificial heat or light, gems, salts, minerals, fountains, flowers. Artificial strife Lives in these touches, livelier than life. --Shak. 2. Feigned; fictitious; assumed; affected; not genuine. "Artificial tears." --Shak. 3. Artful; cunning; crafty. [Obs.] --Shak. 4. Cultivated; not indigenous; not of spontaneous growth; as, artificial grasses. --Gibbon. Artificial arguments (Rhet.), arguments invented by the speaker, in distinction from laws, authorities, and the like, which are called inartificial arguments or proofs. --Johnson. Artificial classification (Science), an arrangement based on superficial characters, and not expressing the true natural relations species; as, "the artificial system" in botany, which is the same as the Linn[ae]an system. Artificial horizon. See under Horizon. Artificial light, any light other than that which proceeds from the heavenly bodies. Artificial lines, lines on a sector or scale, so contrived as to represent the logarithmic sines and tangents, which, by the help of the line of numbers, solve, with tolerable exactness, questions in trigonometry, navigation, etc. Artificial numbers, logarithms. Artificial person (Law). See under Person. Artificial sines, tangents, etc., the same as logarithms of the natural sines, tangents, etc. --Hutton.
Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary, © 1996, 1998 MICRA, Inc.
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