con·gen·i·tal 
(kən-jĕnĭ-tl)
(kən-jĕnĭ-tl)adj.
1. Of or relating to a condition that is present at birth, as a result of either heredity or environmental influences: a congenital heart defect; congenital syphilis.
2. Usage Problem Being or having an essential characteristic as if by nature; inherent or inveterate: "the congenital American optimism that denies conflicts and imagines all stories having happy endings" (Robert J. Samuelson).
[From Latin congenitus : com-, com- + genitus, born, past participle of gignere, to bear; see genə- in the Appendix of Indo-European roots.]
con·geni·tal·ly adv.
Usage Note: The Usage Panel is divided evenly on the use of congenital to mean "inveterate." In our 2008 survey, only 50 percent accepted this word in a sentence with the phrase "the most congenital skeptic."