artificial
adjective
ar·ti·fi·cial ˌär-tə-ˈfi-shᵊl 
1
: humanly contrived (see contrive sense 1b) often on a natural model : man-made
an artificial limb
artificial diamonds
2
a
: having existence in legal, economic, or political theory
b
: caused or produced by a human and especially social or political agency
an artificial price advantage
Within these companies, qualified women run into artificial barriers that prevent them from advancing to top positions in management.
James J. Kilpatrick
James J. Kilpatrick3
a
: lacking in natural or spontaneous quality
an artificial smile
an artificial excitement
b
: imitation, sham
artificial flavor
4
: based on differential morphological characters not necessarily indicative of natural relationships
an artificial key for plant identification
5
obsolete : artful, cunning
artificiality
ˌär-tə-ˌfi-shē-ˈa-lə-tē
noun artificially
ˌär-tə-ˈfi-shᵊl-ē
adverb artificialness
ˌär-tə-ˈfi-shəl-nəs
noun 
Synonyms
- affected
- assumed
- bogus
- contrived
- factitious
- fake
- false
- feigned
- forced
- mechanical
- mock
- phony
- phoney
- plastic
- pretended
- pseudo
- put-on
- sham
- simulated
- spurious
- strained
- unnatural
See all Synonyms & Antonyms 
Example Sentences
the world's first artificial heart This product contains no artificial colors natural substances are used. The country's borders are artificial, and were set with no consideration for the various ethnic groups in the region.
Recent Examples on the Web Brussels has also created an artificial scarcity of ETS permits. The Editorial Board, WSJ, 11 Sep. 2022 There's growing evidence that artificial sweeteners may raise heart risks and elevate blood sugar. Jacqueline Stenson, NBC News, 11 Sep. 2022 The company space150 generated buzz with TravisBott, an artificial neural network that creates original music made to sound like Travis Scott. Harmeet Kaur, CNN, 11 Sep. 2022 This one, however, leaves me with noticeable results that always look very natural and never too artificial in mere seconds. Sophie Dweck, Town & Country, 10 Sep. 2022 Luna was found around 30 minutes into the game, bleeding on the ground outside Lot L, which sits off Stadium Drive across from an artificial lake just south of the stadium. Noah Goldberg, Los Angeles Times, 9 Sep. 2022 Stewart teamed up with Green Mountain Coffee Roasters to celebrate their fall lineup of flavors including Pumpkin Spice, Maple Pecan and Dark Chocolate Hazelnut, which are now made with natural flavors and are stripped of all artificial flavorings. Sabrina Weiss, Peoplemag, 8 Sep. 2022 After two days in Kyiv’s suburbs, buildings in rubble began to seem normal, while an intact street looked artificial, like a deceptively pretty painting, and the sight of a child anywhere around the capital was almost startling. George Packer, The Atlantic, 6 Sep. 2022 There was no need for artificial celebration as the Roadrunners put on a show for the 37,526 in attendance, the fifth-largest crowd in school history. Raul Dominguez, Chron, 3 Sep. 2022 See More
The Editorial Board, WSJ, 11 Sep. 2022 There's growing evidence that artificial sweeteners may raise heart risks and elevate blood sugar. Jacqueline Stenson, NBC News, 11 Sep. 2022 The company space150 generated buzz with TravisBott, an artificial neural network that creates original music made to sound like Travis Scott. Harmeet Kaur, CNN, 11 Sep. 2022 This one, however, leaves me with noticeable results that always look very natural and never too artificial in mere seconds. Sophie Dweck, Town & Country, 10 Sep. 2022 Luna was found around 30 minutes into the game, bleeding on the ground outside Lot L, which sits off Stadium Drive across from an artificial lake just south of the stadium. Noah Goldberg, Los Angeles Times, 9 Sep. 2022 Stewart teamed up with Green Mountain Coffee Roasters to celebrate their fall lineup of flavors including Pumpkin Spice, Maple Pecan and Dark Chocolate Hazelnut, which are now made with natural flavors and are stripped of all artificial flavorings. Sabrina Weiss, Peoplemag, 8 Sep. 2022 After two days in Kyiv’s suburbs, buildings in rubble began to seem normal, while an intact street looked artificial, like a deceptively pretty painting, and the sight of a child anywhere around the capital was almost startling. George Packer, The Atlantic, 6 Sep. 2022 There was no need for artificial celebration as the Roadrunners put on a show for the 37,526 in attendance, the fifth-largest crowd in school history. Raul Dominguez, Chron, 3 Sep. 2022 See More Word History
Etymology
Middle English, "devised by humans (as opposed to originating naturally or divinely)," borrowed from Middle French & Medieval Latin; Middle French artificiel, borrowed from Medieval Latin artificiālis "produced by human skill, skilled, artistic," going back to Latin, "furnished or contrived by art (in rhetoric)," from artificium "artistry, craftsmanship, craft" + -ālis -al entry 1 — more at artifice
First Known Use
15th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1
Phrases Containing artificial
Kids Definition
artificial
adjective
ar·ti·fi·cial ˌär-tə-ˈfi-shəl
1
: made by humans
an artificial lake
2
: not natural in quality
an artificial smile
3
: made to seem like something natural
artificial flowers
artificial flavoring
Medical Definition
artificial
adjective
ar·ti·fi·cial ˌärt-ə-ˈfish-əl
1
: humanly contrived often on a natural model
an artificial limb
2
: based on differential morphological characters not necessarily indicative of natural relationships
an artificial key for identification of a group of organisms
Legal Definition
artificial
adjective
ar·ti·fi·cial
1
a
: made by humans
artificial accessions
compare natural b
: caused or produced by a human and especially social or political agency
an artificial price advantage
2
: arising through operation of law
artificially
adverb
as in unnaturally
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
- unnaturally
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
- naturally
- intrinsically
- inherently
- essentially
- constitutionally
- congenitally
- innately
- fundamentally
- basically
- elementally
- instinctively
- intuitively