artificial

ar·ti·fi·cial

adjective \ˌär-tə-ˈfi-sh^əl\

Definition of ARTIFICIAL

1

: humanly contrived often on a natural model : man-made <an artificial limb> <artificial diamonds>

2

a : having existence in legal, economic, or political theory

b : caused or produced by a human and especially social or political agency <an artificial price advantage> <artificial barriers of discrimination — R. C. Weaver>

3

obsolete : artful, cunning

4

a : lacking in natural or spontaneous quality <an artificial smile> <an artificial excitement>

b : imitation, sham <artificial flavor>

5

: based on differential morphological characters not necessarily indicative of natural relationships <an artificial key for plant identification>

— ar·ti·fi·ci·al·i·ty \ˌär-tə-ˌfi-shē-ˈa-lə-tē\ noun

— ar·ti·fi·cial·ly \-ˈfi-sh^əl-ē\ adverb

— ar·ti·fi·cial·ness \-ˈfi-shəl-nəs\ noun

Examples of ARTIFICIAL

1. the world's first artificial heart
2. This product contains no artificial colors natural substances are used.
3. The country's borders are artificial, and were set with no consideration for the various ethnic groups in the region.

First Known Use of ARTIFICIAL

14th century

Related to ARTIFICIAL

Synonyms

affected, assumed, bogus, contrived, factitious, fake, false, feigned, forced, mechanical, mock, phony (also phoney), plastic, pretended, pseudo, put-on, sham, simulated, spurious, strained, unnatural

Antonyms

artless, genuine, natural, spontaneous, unaffected, uncontrived, unfeigned, unforced

Related Words

automatic, canned, concocted, fabricated, hokey, labored, manufactured, pat, unauthentic, unreal, unrealistic; double-dealing, empty, facile, hollow, hypocritical, insincere, left-handed, mealy, mealymouthed, two-faced, unctuous; exaggerated, histrionic, melodramatic, overacted, overdone, theatrical (also theatric); cute, cutesy, genteel, goody-goody, mincing, overrefined, simpering; conventional, formal, impersonal, inflexible, rigid, stiff, stylized, wooden; artful, calculated, conscious, cultivated, deliberate, premeditated, studied

Near Antonyms

authentic, bona fide, real, realistic, right, true; honest, ingenuous, sincere, unpretending; easy, effortless, smooth; extemporaneous, impromptu, impulsive, instinctive, unconscious, unprompted, unrehearsed, unstudied

ar·ti·fi·cial

adjective \ˌärt-ə-ˈfish-əl\   (Medical Dictionary)

Medical Definition of ARTIFICIAL

1

: humanly contrived often on a natural model <an artificial limb>

2

: based on differential morphological characters not necessarily indicative of natural relationships <an artificial key for identification of a group of organisms>

—ar·ti·fi·cial·ly \-ˈfish-(ə-)lē\ adverb