adjective

artificial

Made or produced by people rather than occurring naturally.

An artificial pond supplies water to the garden's irrigation system.

Etymology

The Latin adjective describes what is made by human art or skill. Artificial preserves that contrast between deliberate manufacture and something arising through natural processes.

More examples

  • The room is lit entirely by artificial light.
  • She decorated the table with artificial flowers.
  • The product contains no artificial coloring.

Forms

artificial · more artificial · most artificial

Similar words

synthetic
Often means produced through chemical synthesis.
imitation
Specifically copies something else rather than simply being human-made.