nature

1 the set of qualities that makes a person, a group of people, or a thing different from others it was the violent nature of his stories that got them banned from school libraries her nature was such that lying was never an option for her the stoic nature of these people enables them to endure one calamity after another Synonyms character, clay, colors, complexion, constitution, genius, personality, self, tone Related Words distinctiveness, distinctness, individuality, singularity, uniqueness; attribute, characteristic, earmark, essentiality, feature, flavor, hallmark, mark, point, property, savor (also savour), stamp, trait; disposition, grain, sort, temper, temperament; composition, makeup; essence, essentiality, interior, interiority, soul, spirit; metal, stuff, substance; habit, way

2 that part of the physical world that is removed from human habitation needed to get out of the office and back to nature in order to clear his head Synonyms open, open air, outdoors, out-of-doors, wild, wilderness Related Words backwoods, bush, country, frontier, hinterland, sticks, up-country; outside, without; badland, barren, desert, waste, wasteland

3 a number of persons or things that are grouped together because they have something in common group together anything round: buttons, lids, coins, and other things of that nature Synonyms breed, class, description, feather, genre, ilk, kidney, kind, like, manner, sort, order, species, strain, stripe, type, varietyRelated Words model; sample, specimen; bracket, bunch, category, division, family, grade, group, grouping, lot, persuasion, rank(s), set, suite

4 one's characteristic attitude or mood a boy of a quiet and shy nature Synonyms grain, disposition, temper, temperamentRelated Words cheer, frame, habit, humor, inclination, mode, spirit; angle, attitude, mind-set, outlook, perspective, slant, standpoint, viewpoint; emotion, feeling, heart, passion, sentiment, spirit; strain; belief, conviction, judgment (or judgement), mind, notion, opinion, persuasion, view; expression, tone, vein; character, identity, individuality, makeup, mettle, personality, selfhood, self-identity, setup; responsiveness, sensibility, sensitiveness, sensitivity

5 the quality or qualities that make a thing what it is some artists maintain that color, light, and shadow are the very nature of painting Synonyms being, essentiality, essence, quiddity, quintessence, soul, stuff, substanceRelated Words heart, spirit; alpha and omega, center, core, keynote, marrow, pith, seat; embodiment, epitome, incarnation, manifestation, personification; aspect, attribute, feature, property; gist, kernel, nub

6 the whole body of things observed or assumed the belief that all of nature is controlled by an unseen Supreme Being Synonyms cosmos, creation, macrocosm, universe, worldRelated Words existence, realityNear Antonyms nothingness, void