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

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

Synonyms

• foreign

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

Thriving populations of non-native birds, such as Amazon parrots and peacocks, illustrate how aesthetic preferences and everyday choices can significantly influence the city’s ecological makeup in lasting ways. —Los Angeles Times, 9 July 2025

The pond has also become a very popular spot for turtles, non-native red-eared sliders. —Karen Billing, San Diego Union-Tribune, 8 July 2025

Fast-growing, non-native species like eucalyptus and pine are often favored for their rapid carbon uptake but can deplete groundwater, reduce biodiversity, and increase wildfire risk. —Dianne Plummer, Forbes.com, 8 July 2025

However, these animals are often captured from the wild or come from the pet trade, thereby introducing non-native wildlife into the urban ecosystem. —Elizabeth Carlen, The Conversation, 3 July 2025

Word History

First Known Use

1845, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for non-native

• creative
• locative
• nonnative
• probative
• rotative
• accommodative
• accumulative
• adjudicative
• administrative
• agglutinative
• ameliorative
• appreciative