nature
noun
Simple meaning
The natural physical world including plants and animals and landscapes etc.
Pronunciation
Say it like this:
naycherSay the bold part a little louder.
IPA pronunciation (US)
ˈneɪtʃɚ
This word is pronounced essentially the same in American and British English, so one transcription covers both.
IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) is a standard way of writing speech sounds.
Definition
Everyday modern meanings first, grouped by part of speech.
noun
The natural physical world including plants and animals and landscapes etc.
“They tried to preserve nature as they found it.”
The essential qualities or characteristics by which something is recognized
“It is the nature of fire to burn.”
uncountableoften capitalized
The way things are, the totality of all things in the physical universe and their order, especially the physical world in contrast to spiritual realms and flora and fauna as distinct from human conventions, art, and technology.
The essential or innate characteristics of a person or thing which will always tend to manifest, especially in contrast to specific contexts, reason, religious duty, upbringing, and personal pretense or effort.
A causal agent creating and controlling things in the universe
The particular way someone or something is, especially
Word at a Glance
- Difficulty
- A1 · Beginner
- Frequency
- Very Common
- Typical Use
- Everyday English
Word Aura™
How this word commonly comes across.
Aura for this meaning
This meaning: The natural physical world including plants and animals and landscapes etc.
Used this way, nature is a common word that usually carries little praise or criticism of its own. It usually sounds natural in a wide range of settings.
“They tried to preserve nature as they found it.”
- Emotional tone
- Neutral
- Formality
- Neutral
- Intensity
- Not strongly marked
- How common
- Common
- Connotation
- Matter-of-fact
- Usage feel
- Neutral and straightforward
Word Aura describes common impressions, not a measurement. Tone changes with sentence, speaker, relationship and situation.
How It’s Used
The word’s distinct uses, one example each.
Natural / totalitynoun
“They tried to preserve nature as they found it.”
Essentialnoun
“It is the nature of fire to burn.”
More ways to use nature
- “They tried to preserve nature as they found it.”noun
- “It is the nature of fire to burn.”noun
- “It is his nature to help others.”noun
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Common Patterns and Combinations
How this word naturally appears with others.
Word Family
Related forms, grouped by how they connect.
Word family
Words built from the same root.
A person who practices nudity for reasons of health or religion.
In accordance with nature.
As might be expected.
Compound terms
Established multiword terms.
The study of animals and plants in the natural world (usually at an elementary level).
A system of religion that deifies and worships natural forces and phenomena.
Having an easygoing and cheerful disposition.
A cheerful, obliging disposition.
The shared psychological attributes of humankind that are assumed to be shared by all human beings.
Having an irritable and unpleasant disposition.
Related words
Connected by subject or meaning, not by word formation.
The quality of being brought into conformity with nature.
A rule or body of rules of conduct inherent in human nature and essential to or binding upon human society.
A process existing in or produced by nature (rather than by the intent of human beings).
Resources (actual and potential) supplied by nature.
Resources (actual and potential) supplied by nature.
One of the four virtues (prudence, justice, fortitude, and temperance) derived from nature.
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What Does It Mean Here?
Words can change meaning depending on context.
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Dictionary data from Wiktionary via the Free Dictionary API. Simple meanings, combinations and word intelligence are built from verified reference data, no AI is used to load this page.