Preternatural
//ˌpɹi.tɚˈnæt͡ʃ.(ə)ɹ.əl// adj
adj ·Moderate ·College level
Definitions
Adjective
- 1 Beyond or not conforming to what is natural or according to the regular course of things; strange.
"I have employed cold air, and very often spongings with cold water, in order to moderate the preternatural heat of the skin, and to check the increased velocity of the circulation."
- 2 Having an existence outside of the natural world. dated
"Macbeth is like a record of a preternatural and tragical event."
Adjective
- 1 existing outside of or not in accordance with nature wordnet
- 2 surpassing the ordinary or normal wordnet
Example
More examples"I have employed cold air, and very often spongings with cold water, in order to moderate the preternatural heat of the skin, and to check the increased velocity of the circulation."
Etymology
From preter- + natural, after Latin prēternātūrālis/praeternātūrālis, from praeter nātūram, from praeter (“beyond”) + nātūra (“nature”); compare supernatural.
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Data sourced from Wiktionary, WordNet, CMU, and other open linguistic databases. Updated March 2026.