abiotic
/ˌeɪbʌɪˈɒtɪk
/adjective
1Physical rather than biological; not derived from living organisms: abiotic chemical reactions...
- Water is obviously a crucial and highly variable abiotic factor for every living organism.
- This is distinct from the notion of selection deriving from pressures exerted by the biotic and abiotic environment inhabited by the organism.
- For insects on plants, demes may evolve in response to local abiotic features, rather than to the natal host plant.
1.1Devoid of life; sterile: soils are seldom completely abiotic...
- We know certain principles, which can be proven experimentally, to be universal, from the standpoint of the assumption that the universe was abiotic - not a living universe.
- There is no reason to declare that Mars has been abiotic throughout its history.
- As you know, the planet was originally considered to be abiotic, by some people.
