What does "native" mean?
A person who is native to a place; a person who was born in a place.
Native
/ˈneɪtɪv/ adj, noun
adj, noun ·Common ·Middle school level
Meaning at a glance
- Primary sense: A person who is native to a place; a person who was born in a place.
- Grammar: native is listed as adj, noun.
- Nearest alternatives: aborigine, aboriginal, aboriginal, aboriginal.
- Useful contrasts: allochthonous, foreign, fremd.
- Usage evidence: We had native guides on our trip to the mountain.
How to use "native"
- Start with the primary definition, then check the part of speech before placing the word in a sentence.
- Compare nearby synonyms to make sure "native" carries the exact meaning, tone, and strength you need.
- Use the example sentence as a context check. If your sentence uses the word differently, confirm that the grammar still fits.
Meaning check
- Does the word fit the sentence's grammar?
- Does it match the intended tone rather than only the dictionary definition?
- Would a simpler synonym be clearer for the reader?
- Is there enough surrounding context to prevent ambiguity?
Source and review context
This entry combines structured lexical data with WordToolSet review checks. Definitions, examples, synonyms, and usage notes may come from different source tables, so the page is designed to show evidence from more than one angle before you rely on "native" in a final draft.
If a word has several senses, prefer the sense that matches your sentence's grammar and surrounding context. A correct definition can still be the wrong choice when the sentence needs a different register, emphasis, or level of specificity.
Before you rely on this definition
Read the first definition as a starting point, then check the example, synonyms, and part of speech before treating "native" as the right word for your sentence.
If your draft is formal, technical, persuasive, or sensitive, compare "native" with a nearby alternative so the final choice matches both meaning and reader expectation.
Compare nearby meanings
- Use synonyms when you need a softer, stronger, simpler, or more specific word.
- Use antonyms to check the boundary of the meaning and avoid accidental contrast.
- Use the example sentence to confirm the word behaves naturally in context.
- Keep the original wording when a replacement adds complexity without improving precision.
Definition decision workflow
1. Identify the role
Check whether "native" is acting as adj, noun in your sentence. A definition is only useful when the grammar matches the way the word is being used.
2. Test the nearest option
Compare it with "aborigine" and other nearby choices to see whether the sentence needs a softer, stronger, or more familiar word.
3. Confirm with context
Use the example sentence below as an evidence check, then read your own sentence out loud to catch tone or rhythm problems.
Review note: Definition pages are checked for source coverage, sentence evidence, synonym support, and editorial insight before they are treated as approval-ready pages. If the evidence is too thin, the page remains available to users but is kept out of the approval-facing indexed inventory.
Final meaning check
Before publishing a sentence with "native", ask whether the word helps the reader understand the idea faster. A precise word should reduce confusion, not simply make the sentence look more polished.
When the definition, synonym evidence, and example context point in the same direction, the word is usually a safer choice. When they conflict, revise the sentence or choose a clearer alternative.
Definitions
Noun
- 1 A person who is native to a place; a person who was born in a place.
- 2 An aboriginal inhabitant of a colonized region, especially one colonized by English-speaking people. (Compare native, which is more general.)
"[…] cachet, Amazon Natives have succeeded in attracting an impressive degree of international support. The catastrophic attrition of Natives in Brazil raises the fundamental question of why the Portuguese took Africans there at all. […]"
- 3 indigenous plants and animals wordnet
- 4 A person of aboriginal descent, as distinguished from a person who was or whose ancestors were foreigners or settlers/colonizers. Alternative letter-case form of Native (aboriginal inhabitant of the Americas or Australia).
"Mail trains are limited to first and second class passengers, but on the mixed trains third class is also provided, and this is patronised exclusively by natives."
- 5 An aboriginal inhabitant of a colonized region, especially one colonized by English-speaking people. (Compare native, which is more general.); A Native American. Canada, US
Show 6 more definitions
- 6 an indigenous person who was born in a particular place wordnet
- 7 A native speaker.
- 8 An aboriginal inhabitant of a colonized region, especially one colonized by English-speaking people. (Compare native, which is more general.); An Aborigine. Australia, New-Zealand
- 9 a person born in a particular place or country wordnet
- 10 An oyster of species Ostrea edulis.
- 11 An aboriginal inhabitant of a colonized region, especially one colonized by English-speaking people. (Compare native, which is more general.); A black African, especially a Bantu. South-Africa, dated, offensive, possibly
"Thunderstorms have been more frequent, and I regret to say during one last week a Native kraal was struck by lightning, the electric fluid killing three head of cattle; several Natives in a hut received a shock, but happily no further injury."
Adjective
- 1 Belonging to one by birth.
"This is my native land."
- 2 Aboriginal to a colonized region, especially one colonized by English-speaking people. (Compare native, which is more general.) not-comparable
"[…] when the Treaty of Tordesillas (in Portuguese, Tordesilhas) gave the disgruntled Portuguese the land mass now known as Brazil; and leads us all the way into the twenty—first century, with hosts of unsettled Native land claims […]"
- 3 Characteristic of or relating to people inhabiting a region from prehistoric times.
"What are now called ‘Native Americans’ used to be called Indians."
- 4 Aboriginal to a colonized region, especially one colonized by English-speaking people. (Compare native, which is more general.); Indian: Native American or First Nation; of or relating to (North) American Indians. Canada, US, not-comparable
"Therefore, in 1885 Congress passed the Major Crimes Act whereby jurisdiction in the case of seven major crimes (the list of crimes was later expanded) occurring on Native lands was placed in the hands of federal courts."
- 5 Alternative letter-case form of Native (of or relating to the native inhabitants of the Americas, or of Australia). alt-of
Show 9 more definitions
- 6 Aboriginal to a colonized region, especially one colonized by English-speaking people. (Compare native, which is more general.); Aboriginal; of or relating to Australian Aboriginal peoples, Aborigines. Australia, New-Zealand, not-comparable
"He did not ask the Council to sanction the removal of all restrictions on Native lands, but simply asked that such lands as are to be rated under this Bill should have their titles freed in so far as to enable the Native owners to lease those lands and obtain some benefit therefrom."
- 7 Born or grown in the region in which it lives or is found; not foreign or imported.
"a native inhabitant"
- 8 Aboriginal to a colonized region, especially one colonized by English-speaking people. (Compare native, which is more general.); Related to black Africans, especially Bantu. South-Africa, not-comparable
- 9 Which occurs of its own accord in a given locality, to be contrasted with a species introduced by humans.
"The naturalized Norway maple often outcompetes the native North American sugar maple."
- 10 Pertaining to the system or architecture in question.
"This is a native back-end to gather the latest news feeds."
- 11 Occurring naturally in its pure or uncombined form.
"native aluminium"
- 12 Arising by birth; having an origin; born.
"Anaximander's opinion is, that the gods are native, rising and vanishing again in long periods of times."
- 13 Original; constituting the original substance of anything.
"native dust"
- 14 Naturally related; cognate; connected (with).
"The head is not more native to the heart, […] Than is the throne of Denmark to thy father."
Adjective
- 1 belonging to one by birth wordnet
- 2 characteristic of or existing by virtue of geographic origin wordnet
- 3 characteristic of or relating to people inhabiting a region from the beginning wordnet
- 4 as found in nature in the elemental form wordnet
Antonyms
Example
"We had native guides on our trip to the mountain."
Common questions
What is a synonym for "native"?
Common synonyms include: aborigine, aboriginal, aboriginal, aboriginal, aborigine, agrarian.
How do you use "native" in a sentence?
We had native guides on our trip to the mountain.
How do you pronounce "native"?
Pronounced /ˈneɪtɪv/.
Etymology
Inherited from Middle English natif, from Old French natif, from Latin nātīvus, from nātus (“birth”). Doublet of naive and neif.