c.1300, naturel, "of one's inborn character, of the world of nature (especially as opposed to man)," from O.Fr. naturel, from L. naturalis "by birth, according to nature," from natura "nature" (see nature). Meaning "easy, free from affectation" is attested from 1607. As a euphemism for "illegitimate, bastard" (of children), it is first recorded 1586, on notion of blood kinship (but not legal status). The noun sense of "person with a natural gift or talent" is first attested 1925, originally in prizefighting. Natural-born first attested 1583. Natural order "apparent order in nature" is from 1697. Natural childbirth first attested 1933. Natural life, usually in ref. to the duration of life, is from 1483. Natural history is from 1567 (see history).
in accordance with nature; relating to or concerning nature; "a very natural development"; "our natural environment"; "natural science"; "natural resources"; "natural cliffs"; "natural phenomena" [ant: unnatural]
2.
existing in or produced by nature; not artificial or imitation; "a natural pearl"; "natural gas"; "natural silk"; "natural blonde hair"; "a natural sweetener"; "natural fertilizers" [ant: artificial]
3.
existing in or in conformity with nature or the observable world; neither supernatural nor magical; "a perfectly natural explanation" [ant: supernatural]
4.
functioning or occurring in a normal way; lacking abnormalities or deficiencies; "it's the natural thing to happen"; "natural immunity"; "a grandparent's natural affection for a grandchild"
5.
(of a musical note) being neither raised nor lowered by one chromatic semitone; "a natural scale"; "B natural" [ant: sharp, flat]
6.
unthinking; prompted by (or as if by) instinct; "a cat's natural aversion to water"; "offering to help was as instinctive as breathing"
7.
(used especially of commodities) being unprocessed or manufactured using only simple or minimal processes; "natural yogurt"; "natural produce"; "raw wool"; "raw sugar"; "bales of rude cotton"
8.
related by blood; not adopted
9.
being talented through inherited qualities; "a natural leader"; "a born musician"; "an innate talent"
10.
free from artificiality; "a lifelike pose"; "a natural reaction" [syn: lifelike]
noun
1.
someone regarded as certain to succeed; "he's a natural for the job"
2.
a notation cancelling a previous sharp or flat
3.
(craps) a first roll of 7 or 11 that immediately wins the stake
Main Entry: nat·u·ral Pronunciation: 'nach-(&-)r&l Function: adjective 1: having, constituting, or relating to a
classification based on features existing in nature 2: of or relating to nature as an object of study and research 3: relating to or being natural food
Main Entry: nat·u·ral Function: adjective 1: based on an inherent sense of right and wrong <natural justice> —see also NATURAL LAW, NATURAL RIGHT 2 a:
existing as part of or determined by nature <the natural condition of the land> b: being in accordance with or arising from nature esp. as distinguished from operation of
law —see also NATURAL PERSON —compare ARTIFICIALc: arising from the usual course of events <a natural result of the accident> 3 a: begotten as distinguished from adopted
b: being a relation by consanguinity as distinguished from adoption <natural parents> 4:ILLEGITIMATE <a natural child> —nat·u·ral·lyadverb
NATURAL An integrated 4GL from Software AG, Germany. The menu-driven version is SUPER/NATURAL. Natural 2 is a major upgrade to Natural 1. Version 2.1.7 in the MVS environment (June 1995, also available for Unix). Natural works with DB2 and various other databases, but Natural and Adabas normally go together. There are many products available in the "Natural" family, including SuperNatural, Natural for Windows, Entire Connection (enables up/downloading and interaction with Excel) and Esperant. (1995-11-14)
Na"tive\, a. [F. natif, L. nativus, fr. nasci, p. p. natus. See Nation, and cf. Na["i]ve, Nelf a serf.]1. Arising by birth; having an origin; born. [Obs.] Anaximander's opinion is, that the gods are native, rising and vanishing again in long periods of times. --Cudworth. 2. Of or pertaining to one's birth; natal; belonging to the place or the circumstances in which one is born; -- opposed to foreign; as, native land, language, color, etc. 3. Born in the region in which one lives; as, a native inhabitant, race; grown or originating in the region where used or sold; not foreign or imported; as, native oysters, or strawberries. 4. Original; constituting the original substance of anything; as, native dust. --Milton. 5. Conferred by birth; derived from origin; born with one; inherent; inborn; not acquired; as, native genius, cheerfulness, simplicity, rights, etc. Courage is native to you. --Jowett (Thucyd. ). 6. Naturally related; cognate; connected (with). [R.] the head is not more native to the heart, . . . Than is the throne of Denmark to thy father. --Shak. 7. (Min.) (a) Found in nature uncombined with other elements; as, native silver. (b) Found in nature; not artificial; as native sodium chloride. Native American party. See under American, a. Native bear (Zo["o]l.), the koala. Native bread (Bot.), a large underground fungus, of Australia (Mylitta australis), somewhat resembling a truffle, but much larger. Native devil. (Zo["o]l.) Same as Tasmanian devil, under Devil. Native hen (Zo["o]l.), an Australian rail (Tribonyx Mortierii). Native pheasant. (Zo["o]l.) See Leipoa. Native rabbit (Zo["o]l.), an Australian marsupial (Perameles lagotis) resembling a rabbit in size and form. Native sloth (Zo["o]l.), the koala. Native thrush (Zo["o]l.), an Australian singing bird (Pachycephala olivacea); -- called also thickhead. Native turkey (Zo["o]l.), the Australian bustard (Choriotis australis); -- called also bebilya. Syn: Natural; natal; original; congential. Usage: Native, Natural, Natal. natural refers to the nature of a thing, or that which springs therefrom; native, to one's birth or origin; as, a native country, language, etc.; natal, to the circumstances of one's birth; as, a natal day, or star. Native talent is that which is inborn; natural talent is that which springs from the structure of the mind. Native eloquence is the result of strong innate emotion; natural eloquence is opposed to that which is studied or artifical.
Nat"u*ral\ (?; 135), a. [OE. naturel, F. naturel, fr. L. naturalis, fr. natura. See Nature.]1. Fixed or determined by nature; pertaining to the constitution of a thing; belonging to native character; according to nature; essential; characteristic; not artifical, foreign, assumed, put on, or acquired; as, the natural growth of animals or plants; the natural motion of a gravitating body; natural strength or disposition; the natural heat of the body; natural color. With strong natural sense, and rare force of will. --Macaulay. 2. Conformed to the order, laws, or actual facts, of nature; consonant to the methods of nature; according to the stated course of things, or in accordance with the laws which govern events, feelings, etc.; not exceptional or violent; legitimate; normal; regular; as, the natural consequence of crime; a natural death. What can be more natural than the circumstances in the behavior of those women who had lost their husbands on this fatal day? --Addison. 3. Having to do with existing system to things; dealing with, or derived from, the creation, or the world of matter and mind, as known by man; within the scope of human reason or experience; not supernatural; as, a natural law; natural science; history, theology. I call that natural religion which men might know . . . by the mere principles of reason, improved by consideration and experience, without the help of revelation. --Bp. Wilkins. 4. Conformed to truth or reality; as: (a) Springing from true sentiment; not artifical or exaggerated; -- said of action, delivery, etc.; as, a natural gesture, tone, etc. (b) Resembling the object imitated; true to nature; according to the life; -- said of anything copied or imitated; as, a portrait is natural. 5. Having the character or sentiments properly belonging to one's position; not unnatural in feelings. To leave his wife, to leave his babes, . . . He wants the natural touch. --Shak. 6. Connected by the ties of consanguinity. "Natural friends." --J. H. Newman. 7. Begotten without the sanction of law; born out of wedlock; illegitimate; bastard; as, a natural child. 8. Of or pertaining to the lower or animal nature, as contrasted with the higher or moral powers, or that which is spiritual; being in a state of nature; unregenerate. The natural man receiveth not the things of the Spirit of God. --1 Cor. ii. 14. 9. (Math.) Belonging to, to be taken in, or referred to, some system, in which the base is 1; -- said or certain functions or numbers; as, natural numbers, those commencing at 1; natural sines, cosines, etc., those taken in arcs whose radii are 1. 10. (Mus.) (a) Produced by natural organs, as those of the human throat, in distinction from instrumental music. (b) Of or pertaining to a key which has neither a flat nor a sharp for its signature, as the key of C major. (c) Applied to an air or modulation of harmony which moves by easy and smooth transitions, digressing but little from the original key. --Moore (Encyc. of Music). Natural day, the space of twenty-four hours. --Chaucer. Natural fats, Natural gas, etc. See under Fat, Gas. etc. Natural Harmony (Mus.), the harmony of the triad or common chord. Natural history, in its broadest sense, a history or description of nature as a whole, incuding the sciences of botany, zo["o]logy, geology, mineralogy, paleontology, chemistry, and physics. In recent usage the term is often restricted to the sciences of botany and zo["o]logy collectively, and sometimes to the science of zoology alone. Natural law, that instinctive sense of justice and of right and wrong, which is native in mankind, as distinguished from specifically revealed divine law, and formulated human law. Natural modulation (Mus.), transition from one key to its relative keys. Natural order. (Nat. Hist.) See under order. Natural person. (Law) See under person, n. Natural philosophy, originally, the study of nature in general; in modern usage, that branch of physical science, commonly called physics, which treats of the phenomena and laws of matter and considers those effects only which are unaccompanied by any change of a chemical nature; -- contrasted with mental and moral philosophy. Natural scale (Mus.), a scale which is written without flats or sharps. Model would be a preferable term, as less likely to mislead, the so-called artificial scales (scales represented by the use of flats and sharps) being equally natural with the so-called natural scale Natural science, natural history, in its broadest sense; -- used especially in contradistinction to mental or moral science. Natural selection (Biol.), a supposed operation of natural laws analogous, in its operation and results, to designed selection in breeding plants and animals, and resulting in the survival of the fittest. The theory of natural selection supposes that this has been brought about mainly by gradual changes of environment which have led to corresponding changes of structure, and that those forms which have become so modified as to be best adapted to the changed environment have tended to survive and leave similarly adapted descendants, while those less perfectly adapted have tended to die out though lack of fitness for the environment, thus resulting in the survival of the fittest. See Darwinism. Natural system (Bot. & Zo["o]l.), a classification based upon real affinities, as shown in the structure of all parts of the organisms, and by their embryology. It should be borne in mind that the natural system of botany is natural only in the constitution of its genera, tribes, orders, etc., and in its grand divisions. --Gray. Natural theology, or Natural religion, that part of theological science which treats of those evidences of the existence and attributes of the Supreme Being which are exhibited in nature; -- distinguished from revealed religion. See Quotation under Natural, a., 3. Natural vowel, the vowel sound heard in urn, furl, sir, her, etc.; -- so called as being uttered in the easiest open position of the mouth organs. See Neutral vowel, under Neutral and Guide to Pronunciation, [sect] 17. Syn: See Native.
Nat"u*ral\ (?; 135), a. [OE. naturel, F. naturel, fr. L. naturalis, fr. natura. See Nature.]1. Fixed or determined by nature; pertaining to the constitution of a thing; belonging to native character; according to nature; essential; characteristic; not artifical, foreign, assumed, put on, or acquired; as, the natural growth of animals or plants; the natural motion of a gravitating body; natural strength or disposition; the natural heat of the body; natural color. With strong natural sense, and rare force of will. --Macaulay. 2. Conformed to the order, laws, or actual facts, of nature; consonant to the methods of nature; according to the stated course of things, or in accordance with the laws which govern events, feelings, etc.; not exceptional or violent; legitimate; normal; regular; as, the natural consequence of crime; a natural death. What can be more natural than the circumstances in the behavior of those women who had lost their husbands on this fatal day? --Addison. 3. Having to do with existing system to things; dealing with, or derived from, the creation, or the world of matter and mind, as known by man; within the scope of human reason or experience; not supernatural; as, a natural law; natural science; history, theology. I call that natural religion which men might know . . . by the mere principles of reason, improved by consideration and experience, without the help of revelation. --Bp. Wilkins. 4. Conformed to truth or reality; as: (a) Springing from true sentiment; not artifical or exaggerated; -- said of action, delivery, etc.; as, a natural gesture, tone, etc. (b) Resembling the object imitated; true to nature; according to the life; -- said of anything copied or imitated; as, a portrait is natural. 5. Having the character or sentiments properly belonging to one's position; not unnatural in feelings. To leave his wife, to leave his babes, . . . He wants the natural touch. --Shak. 6. Connected by the ties of consanguinity. "Natural friends." --J. H. Newman. 7. Begotten without the sanction of law; born out of wedlock; illegitimate; bastard; as, a natural child. 8. Of or pertaining to the lower or animal nature, as contrasted with the higher or moral powers, or that which is spiritual; being in a state of nature; unregenerate. The natural man receiveth not the things of the Spirit of God. --1 Cor. ii. 14. 9. (Math.) Belonging to, to be taken in, or referred to, some system, in which the base is 1; -- said or certain functions or numbers; as, natural numbers, those commencing at 1; natural sines, cosines, etc., those taken in arcs whose radii are 1. 10. (Mus.) (a) Produced by natural organs, as those of the human throat, in distinction from instrumental music. (b) Of or pertaining to a key which has neither a flat nor a sharp for its signature, as the key of C major. (c) Applied to an air or modulation of harmony which moves by easy and smooth transitions, digressing but little from the original key. --Moore (Encyc. of Music). Natural day, the space of twenty-four hours. --Chaucer. Natural fats, Natural gas, etc. See under Fat, Gas. etc. Natural Harmony (Mus.), the harmony of the triad or common chord. Natural history, in its broadest sense, a history or description of nature as a whole, incuding the sciences of botany, zo["o]logy, geology, mineralogy, paleontology, chemistry, and physics. In recent usage the term is often restricted to the sciences of botany and zo["o]logy collectively, and sometimes to the science of zoology alone. Natural law, that instinctive sense of justice and of right and wrong, which is native in mankind, as distinguished from specifically revealed divine law, and formulated human law. Natural modulation (Mus.), transition from one key to its relative keys. Natural order. (Nat. Hist.) See under order. Natural person. (Law) See under person, n. Natural philosophy, originally, the study of nature in general; in modern usage, that branch of physical science, commonly called physics, which treats of the phenomena and laws of matter and considers those effects only which are unaccompanied by any change of a chemical nature; -- contrasted with mental and moral philosophy. Natural scale (Mus.), a scale which is written without flats or sharps. Model would be a preferable term, as less likely to mislead, the so-called artificial scales (scales represented by the use of flats and sharps) being equally natural with the so-called natural scale Natural science, natural history, in its broadest sense; -- used especially in contradistinction to mental or moral science. Natural selection (Biol.), a supposed operation of natural laws analogous, in its operation and results, to designed selection in breeding plants and animals, and resulting in the survival of the fittest. The theory of natural selection supposes that this has been brought about mainly by gradual changes of environment which have led to corresponding changes of structure, and that those forms which have become so modified as to be best adapted to the changed environment have tended to survive and leave similarly adapted descendants, while those less perfectly adapted have tended to die out though lack of fitness for the environment, thus resulting in the survival of the fittest. See Darwinism. Natural system (Bot. & Zo["o]l.), a classification based upon real affinities, as shown in the structure of all parts of the organisms, and by their embryology. It should be borne in mind that the natural system of botany is natural only in the constitution of its genera, tribes, orders, etc., and in its grand divisions. --Gray. Natural theology, or Natural religion, that part of theological science which treats of those evidences of the existence and attributes of the Supreme Being which are exhibited in nature; -- distinguished from revealed religion. See Quotation under Natural, a., 3. Natural vowel, the vowel sound heard in urn, furl, sir, her, etc.; -- so called as being uttered in the easiest open position of the mouth organs. See Neutral vowel, under Neutral and Guide to Pronunciation, [sect] 17. Syn: See Native.
Nat"u*ral\ (?; 135), n. 1. A native; an aboriginal. [Obs.] --Sir W. Raleigh. 2. pl. Natural gifts, impulses, etc. [Obs.] --Fuller. 3. One born without the usual powers of reason or understanding; an idiot. "The minds of naturals." --Locke. 4. (Mus.) A character [[natural]] used to contradict, or to remove the effect of, a sharp or flat which has preceded it, and to restore the unaltered note.
Nat"u*ral*ize\ (?; 135), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Naturalized; p. pr. & vb. n. Naturalizing.] [Cf. F. naturaliser. See Natural.]1. To make natural; as, custom naturalizes labor or study. 2. To confer the rights and privileges of a native subject or citizen on; to make as if native; to adopt, as a foreigner into a nation or state, and place in the condition of a native subject. 3. To receive or adopt as native, natural, or vernacular; to make one's own; as, to naturalize foreign words. 4. To adapt; to accustom; to habituate; to acclimate; to cause to grow as under natural conditions. Its wearer suggested that pears and peaches might yet be naturalized in the New England climate. --Hawthorne.
Re*li"gion\ (r[-e]*l[i^]j"[u^]n), n. [F., from L. religio; cf. religens pious, revering the gods, Gr. 'ale`gein to heed, have a care. Cf. Neglect.]1. The outward act or form by which men indicate their recognition of the existence of a god or of gods having power over their destiny, to whom obedience, service, and honor are due; the feeling or expression of human love, fear, or awe of some superhuman and overruling power, whether by profession of belief, by observance of rites and ceremonies, or by the conduct of life; a system of faith and worship; a manifestation of piety; as, ethical religions; monotheistic religions; natural religion; revealed religion; the religion of the Jews; the religion of idol worshipers. An orderly life so far as others are able to observe us is now and then produced by prudential motives or by dint of habit; but without seriousness there can be no religious principle at the bottom, no course of conduct from religious motives; in a word, there can be no religion. --Paley. Religion [was] not, as too often now, used as equivalent for godliness; but . . . it expressed the outer form and embodiment which the inward spirit of a true or a false devotion assumed. --Trench. Religions, by which are meant the modes of divine worship proper to different tribes, nations, or communities, and based on the belief held in common by the members of them severally. . . . There is no living religion without something like a doctrine. On the other hand, a doctrine, however elaborate, does not constitute a religion. --C. P. Tiele (Encyc. Brit.). Religion . . . means the conscious relation between man and God, and the expression of that relation in human conduct. --J. K["o]stlin (Schaff-Herzog Encyc.) After the most straitest sect of our religion I lived a Pharisee. --Acts xxvi. 5. The image of a brute, adorned With gay religions full of pomp and gold. --Milton. 2. Specifically, conformity in faith and life to the precepts inculcated in the Bible, respecting the conduct of life and duty toward God and man; the Christian faith and practice. Let us with caution indulge the supposition that morality can be maintained without religion. --Washington. Religion will attend you . . . as a pleasant and useful companion in every proper place, and every temperate occupation of life. --Buckminster. 3. (R. C. Ch.) A monastic or religious order subject to a regulated mode of life; the religious state; as, to enter religion. --Trench. A good man was there of religion. --Chaucer. 4. Strictness of fidelity in conforming to any practice, as if it were an enjoined rule of conduct. [R.] Those parts of pleading which in ancient times might perhaps be material, but at this time are become only mere styles and forms, are still continued with much religion. --Sir M. Hale. Note: Religion, as distinguished from theology, is subjective, designating the feelings and acts of men which relate to God; while theology is objective, and denotes those ideas which man entertains respecting the God whom he worships, especially his systematized views of God. As distinguished from morality, religion denotes the influences and motives to human duty which are found in the character and will of God, while morality describes the duties to man, to which true religion always influences. As distinguished from piety, religion is a high sense of moral obligation and spirit of reverence or worship which affect the heart of man with respect to the Deity, while piety, which first expressed the feelings of a child toward a parent, is used for that filial sentiment of veneration and love which we owe to the Father of all. As distinguished from sanctity, religion is the means by which sanctity is achieved, sanctity denoting primarily that purity of heart and life which results from habitual communion with God, and a sense of his continual presence. Natural religion, a religion based upon the evidences of a God and his qualities, which is supplied by natural phenomena. See Natural theology, under Natural. Religion of humanity, a name sometimes given to a religion founded upon positivism as a philosophical basis. Revealed religion, that which is based upon direct communication of God's will to mankind; especially, the Christian religion, based on the revelations recorded in the Old and New Testaments.
Se*lec"tion\, n. [L. selectio: cf. F. s['e]lection.] . The act of selecting, or the state of being selected; choice, by preference. 2. That which is selected; a collection of things chosen; as, a choice selection of books. Natural selection. (Biol.) See under Natural.
Sur*viv"al\, n. [From Survive.]1. A living or continuing longer than, or beyond the existence of, another person, thing, or event; an outliving. 2. (Arh[ae]ol. & Ethnol.) Any habit, usage, or belief, remaining from ancient times, the origin of which is often unknown, or imperfectly known. The close bearing of the doctrine of survival on the study of manners and customs. --Tylor. Survival of the fittest. (Biol.) See Natural selection, under Natural.
The*ol"o*gy\, n.; pl. Theologies. [L. theologia, Gr. ?; ? God + ? discourse: cf. F. th['e]ologie. See Theism, and Logic.] The science of God or of religion; the science which treats of the existence, character, and attributes of God, his laws and government, the doctrines we are to believe, and the duties we are to practice; divinity; (as more commonly understood) "the knowledge derivable from the Scriptures, the systematic exhibition of revealed truth, the science of Christian faith and life." Many speak of theology as a science of religion [instead of "science of God"] because they disbelieve that there is any knowledge of God to be attained. --Prof. R. Flint (Enc. Brit.). Theology is ordered knowledge; representing in the region of the intellect what religion represents in the heart and life of man. --Gladstone. Ascetic theology, Natural theology. See Ascetic, Natural. Moral theology, that phase of theology which is concerned with moral character and conduct. Revealed theology, theology which is to be learned only from revelation. Scholastic theology, theology as taught by the scholastics, or as prosecuted after their principles and methods. Speculative theology, theology as founded upon, or influenced by, speculation or metaphysical philosophy. Systematic theology, that branch of theology of which the aim is to reduce all revealed truth to a series of statements that together shall constitute an organized whole. --E. G. Robinson (Johnson's Cyc.).
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Audio Help [nach-er-uh
) placed before a note to cancel a preceding sharp or flat.
