naturalistic

adjective

nat·​u·​ral·​is·​tic ˌna-ch(ə-)rə-ˈli-stik 

variants or less commonly naturalist

ˈna-ch(ə-)rə-list 

: of, characterized by, or according with naturalism

naturalistically

ˌna-ch(ə-)rə-ˈli-sti-k(ə-)lē 

adverb

Synonyms of naturalistic

• realistic
• living
• natural
• lifelike
• three-dimensional

Examples of naturalistic in a Sentence

The zoo strives to create naturalistic settings for the animals.

the movie's volcanic eruption is so naturalistic that it's easy to forget that it all came out of a computer

Recent Examples on the Web

The rich, naturalistic performances are integrated with an expressive visual style in which every camera move and composition moves the story forward or tells us about the characters’ internal tensions. —Jim Hemphill, IndieWire, 21 Nov. 2025

Advertisement While most fish-out-of-water stories are keen to highlight the strangeness of the world in which the protagonist has embedded themselves, Rental Family treats the curios of Japanese culture with the utmost respect and a naturalistic approach. —Barry Levitt, Time, 21 Nov. 2025

Moon’s poems suggest Buddhist ideologies and Korean temples, yet the works remain largely free of cultural-specific imagery and are, instead, naturalistic or universal. —Literary Hub, 10 Nov. 2025

The trio share subtle, naturalistic comedic timing. —Courtney Howard, Variety, 30 Oct. 2025

Word History

First Known Use

1838, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for naturalistic

• anachronistic
• animalistic
• antagonistic
• antiphlogistic
• behavioristic
• cannibalistic
• capitalistic
• characteristic
• collectivistic
• deterministic
• ethnolinguistic
• expressionistic