non-native
adjective
non-na·tive
ˌnän-ˈnā-tiv 
variants
or nonnative
: not native: such as
a
of a plant or animal
: living or growing in a place that is not the location of its natural occurrence
a non-native fish species
… overgrazing causes grasslands to give way to sagebrush, mesquite and non-native exotic grasses, environmentalists contend.—
Doug McInnis
Doug McInnis
b
: not born or raised in the place where a particular language is spoken
non-native inhabitants
a nonnative speaker of English [=a person who speaks English but whose native language is not English]
non-native
noun
or nonnative
plural non-natives or nonnatives
popular among both natives and non-natives
Examples of non-native in a Sentence
nonnative customs that made the recent immigrants stand out in their new country
Recent Examples on the Web
More Flexibility As Hovis points out, adding native plants to your garden isn’t about nixing non-native plants entirely.
—Ashley Chalmers, The Spruce, 6 June 2026
Combined with the new Prism refinements, even non-native games and legacy creator tools will run smoothly on the new hardware, giving digital artists, developers, and gamers an immediate performance boost.
—Brian Westover, PC Magazine, 1 June 2026
Authorities warned that unauthorized introductions of non-native fish can have serious and irreversible ecological consequences, potentially affecting native fish populations, food webs, wildlife and existing fisheries.
—Cbs News Atlanta Digital Team, CBS News, 28 May 2026
Invasive species are an escalating problem The golden mussel is among myriad species that states and the federal government are trying to kill or control, hoping to curb exotic and non-native species and protect native species and ecosystems.
—Dinah Voyles Pulver, USA Today, 28 May 2026
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Ashley Chalmers, The Spruce, 6 June 2026
Combined with the new Prism refinements, even non-native games and legacy creator tools will run smoothly on the new hardware, giving digital artists, developers, and gamers an immediate performance boost.
—Brian Westover, PC Magazine, 1 June 2026
Authorities warned that unauthorized introductions of non-native fish can have serious and irreversible ecological consequences, potentially affecting native fish populations, food webs, wildlife and existing fisheries.
—Cbs News Atlanta Digital Team, CBS News, 28 May 2026
Invasive species are an escalating problem The golden mussel is among myriad species that states and the federal government are trying to kill or control, hoping to curb exotic and non-native species and protect native species and ecosystems.
—Dinah Voyles Pulver, USA Today, 28 May 2026
See All Example Sentences for non-native
Cite this Entry
“Non-native.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/non-native. Accessed 9 Jun. 2026.
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