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spontaneous - 5 dictionary results

spon⋅ta⋅ne⋅ous

  [spon-tey-nee-uhs]
Use spontaneous in a Sentence
–adjective
1. coming or resulting from a natural impulse or tendency; without effort or premeditation; natural and unconstrained; unplanned: a spontaneous burst of applause.
2. (of a person) given to acting upon sudden impulses.
3. (of natural phenomena) arising from internal forces or causes; independent of external agencies; self-acting.
4. growing naturally or without cultivation, as plants and fruits; indigenous.
5. produced by natural process.
Origin:
1650–60; < LL spontāneus, equiv. to L spont(e) willingly + -āneus (-ān(us) -an + -eus -eous )

Related forms:
spon⋅ta⋅ne⋅ous⋅ly, adverb
spon⋅ta⋅ne⋅ous⋅ness, noun

Synonyms:
1. unpremeditated, free. See automatic, voluntary.

Antonyms:
1. premeditated.
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
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spon·ta·ne·ous   (spŏn-tā'nē-əs)   
adj.  
  1. Happening or arising without apparent external cause; self-generated.
  2. Arising from a natural inclination or impulse and not from external incitement or constraint.
  3. Unconstrained and unstudied in manner or behavior.
  4. Growing without cultivation or human labor.

[From Late Latin spontāneus, of one's own accord, from Latin sponte; see (s)pen- in Indo-European roots.]
spon·ta'ne·ous·ly adv., spon·ta'ne·ous·ness n.
Synonyms: These adjectives mean acting, reacting, or happening without apparent forethought or prompting. Spontaneous applies to what arises naturally rather than resulting from external constraint or stimulus: "The highest and best form of efficiency is the spontaneous cooperation of a free people" (Woodrow Wilson).
Impulsive refers to the operation of a sudden urge or feeling not governed by reason: Buying a car was an impulsive act that he immediately regretted.
Instinctive implies behavior that is a natural consequence of membership in a species. The term also applies to what reflects or comes about as a result of a natural inclination or innate impulse: Helping people in an emergency seems as instinctive as breathing.
Involuntary refers to what is not subject to the control of the will: "People drew in their breath with involuntary surprise and suspense" (Harriet Beecher Stowe).
Automatic implies an unvarying mechanical response or reaction: She accepted the subpoena with an automatic "thank you."
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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Spontaneous

Spon*ta"ne*ous\, a. [L. spontaneus, fr. sponte of free will, voluntarily.]

1. Proceding from natural feeling, temperament, or disposition, or from a native internal proneness, readiness, or tendency, without constraint; as, a spontaneous gift or proportion.

2. Proceeding from, or acting by, internal impulse, energy, or natural law, without external force; as, spontaneous motion; spontaneous growth.

3. Produced without being planted, or without human labor; as, a spontaneous growth of wood.

Spontaneous combustion, combustion produced in a substance by the evolution of heat through the chemical action of its own elements; as, the spontaneous combustion of waste matter saturated with oil.

Spontaneous generation. (Biol.) See under Generation.

Syn: Voluntary; uncompelled; willing.

Usage: Spontaneous, Voluntary. What is voluntary is the result of a volition, or act of choice; it therefore implies some degree of consideration, and may be the result of mere reason without excited feeling. What is spontaneous springs wholly from feeling, or a sudden impulse which admits of no reflection; as, a spontaneous burst of applause. Hence, the term is also applied to things inanimate when they are produced without the determinate purpose or care of man. "Abstinence which is but voluntary fasting, and . . . exercise which is but voluntary labor." --J. Seed.

Spontaneous joys, where nature has its play, The soul adopts, and owns their firstborn away. --Goldsmith. -- Spon*ta"ne*ous*ly, adv. -- Spon*ta"ne*ous*ness, n.
Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary, © 1996, 1998 MICRA, Inc.
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Language Translation for : spontaneous
Spanish: espontáneo,
German: spontan,
Japanese: 自発的な
More Translations »

spontaneous 
1656, from L.L. spontaneus "willing, of one's free will," from L. (sua) sponte "of one's own accord, willingly," of unknown origin. Spontaneous combustion first attested 1795.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
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Main Entry: spon·ta·ne·ous
Pronunciation: spän-'tA-nE-&s
Function: adjective
1 : proceeding from natural feeling ornative tendency without external constraint
2 : developing without apparent external influence, force, cause, or treatment spontaneous nosebleed> —spon·ta·ne·ous·ly adverb
Merriam-Webster's Medical Dictionary, © 2002 Merriam-Webster, Inc.
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