native

adjective

na·tive | \ ˈnā-tiv

Definition of native

(Entry 1 of 2)

1 : inborn, innate native talents

2 : belonging to a particular place by birth a native New Yorker

3 archaic : closely related

4 : belonging to or associated with one by birth hailed in his native Sweden as an influential dramatist— William Peden

5 : natural, normal a generosity that was native to him

6a : grown, produced, or originating in a particular place or in the vicinity : local native fruits and vegetables

b : living or growing naturally in a particular region : indigenous native wildlife of Australia

7 : simple, unaffected our feeling still native and entire, unsophisticated by pedantry— Edmund Burke

8a : constituting the original substance or source the way I must return to native dust— John Milton

b : found in nature especially in an unadulterated form mining native silver

9 chiefly Australia : having a usually superficial (see superficial sense 2) resemblance to a specified English plant or animal

10 capitalized : of, relating to, or being a member of an indigenous people of North or South America : native american

native

noun

Definition of native (Entry 2 of 2)

1 : one born or reared in a particular place

2a : an original or indigenous inhabitant

b : something indigenous to a particular locality

3 : a local resident especially : a person who has always lived in a place as distinguished from a visitor or a temporary resident

Other Words from native Synonyms & Antonyms Choose the Right Synonym More Example Sentences Learn More about native

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Synonyms & Antonyms for native

Synonyms: Adjective

aboriginal, autochthonous, born, domestic, endemic, indigenous

Synonyms: Noun

local, localite, townie (or towny), year-rounder

Antonyms: Adjective

nonindigenous, nonnative

Choose the Right Synonym for native

Adjective

native, indigenous, endemic, aboriginal mean belonging to a locality. native implies birth or origin in a place or region and may suggest compatibility with it. native tribal customs indigenous applies to that which is not only native but which, as far as can be determined, has never been introduced or brought from elsewhere. indigenous plants endemic implies being peculiar to a region. a disease endemic in Africa aboriginal implies having no known others preceding in occupancy of a particular region. the aboriginal peoples of Australia

Examples of native in a Sentence

Adjective

people who are native to France She has a native ability to learn quickly. The island is home to several native species of trees.

Noun

She's a native of France who moved to the United States when she was 15. He wishes he could speak Spanish like a native. The plant is a native of Central and South America.

Recent Examples on the Web: Adjective

For example, early next month Westland will release the latest edition of its Native Oak Series, a whiskey aged in barrels made from Quercus garryana—or Garry oak—a tree native to the region. — Fortune, "How This Pacific Northwest Distiller Is Making a New American Whiskey From the Ground Up," 31 Aug. 2019 Left-hander John Means was activated off the family medical emergency list Friday to start the series opener in his native Kansas City. — Jon Meoli, baltimoresun.com, "Orioles’ Brandon Hyde: Recent dugout altercations distract from ‘the culture that we really feel good about’," 30 Aug. 2019 Jon is a Missouri State University graduate and a proud Kansas City, Mo., native. — Houston Chronicle Sports, Houston Chronicle, "Houston-area high school football media poll: Week 1," 27 Aug. 2019 Importantly, the people being tested, upwards of 2,000 of them, were all native speakers of Swedish, an old language that has learned a new trick. — Adam Rogers, WIRED, "Actually, Gender-Neutral Pronouns Can Change a Culture," 15 Aug. 2019 One group spent the sessions with a native Mandarin Chinese speaker who sang, played, and spoke with the infants; the other did the same activities in English. — Jenny Anderson, Quartz, "Science says children need a village, not an app," 9 Aug. 2019 South Bend, Indiana Mayor Pete Buttigieg’s presidential campaign on Wednesday slammed a lawsuit filed against his native city's innovative identity card program aimed at lending a helping hand to undocumented immigrants. — Adam Edelman, NBC News, "Buttigieg campaign slams lawsuit against South Bend program aiding undocumented immigrants," 7 Aug. 2019 Later on, former Vice President Joe Biden planned to deliver remarks in Iowa about the problem of white nationalism, and former Rep. Beto O’Rourke of Texas was also expected to be in the spotlight as Trump visited his native city, El Paso. — Alexander Burns, BostonGlobe.com, "Cory Booker on white supremacy: ‘There is no neutrality in this fight’," 7 Aug. 2019 At 72, former San Antonio mayor Henry Cisneros is unbowed by paragliding mishap Many of us in this group prefer to call ourselves native Spanish speakers, with all our archaic phrasing and Spanglish gems that transcend both English and Spanish. — Elaine Ayala, ExpressNews.com, "Lack of Spanish fluency should never be a source of shame for Hispanics," 1 Aug. 2019

Recent Examples on the Web: Noun

More: Why the Louisville natives in UK football's freshman class did not play in opener Livestream: Eligible subscribers can stream the broadcast via WatchESPN. — Jon Hale, The Courier-Journal, "How to watch Kentucky football vs. Eastern Michigan: Game time, TV channel, streaming," 31 Aug. 2019 Moore, a Kentucky native who relocated to San Diego, created the San Diego County Library Acoustic Showcase series. — San Diego Union-Tribune, "Rotary volunteers at Stand Down San Diego," 29 Aug. 2019 While Cooper, the 6-foot-4, 322-pound native of Alabama, made four appearances last season and Metz, the 6-foot-9, 330-pound German, saw time in three games, the duo is in for quite the welcome these first two weeks against UCLA and at Ohio State. — Fletcher Page, Cincinnati.com, "Cincinnati football hosts UCLA: 3 keys and a prediction for UC Bearcats opener," 28 Aug. 2019 The Washington native, a one-time finalist in German’s version of The Voice Kids, hit his high notes and had the room on his side throughout. — Billboard Staff, Billboard, "Benicio Bryant Shines With Original Performance on 'America's Got Talent': Watch," 28 Aug. 2019 Purcell, a Highlands Ranch native, spent his rookie season under Fangio with the 49ers in 2014 and scheme familiarity has served Purcell nicely in a Denver reunion. — Kyle Fredrickson, The Denver Post, "10 Broncos to watch on the roster bubble in preseason finale vs. Cardinals," 28 Aug. 2019 Joseph, a Baton Rouge native, played in 11 games as a true freshman last season, totaling 12 tackles and one pass breakup as a reserve cornerback. — Creg Stephenson | [email protected], al, "Former LSU DB Kelvin Joseph transfers to Kentucky," 27 Aug. 2019 Smithson, an East Baltimore native, played three years at Kansas from 2014 to 2017 after spending his freshman year at Hartnell College. — Daniel Oyefusi, baltimoresun.com, "Ravens sign defensive back Anthony ‘Fish’ Smithson, a Baltimore native," 27 Aug. 2019 Sheckells, a Pasadena native, started his college career as a walk-on at Old Dominion, but left there in 2017 for Wesley. — Pat Stoetzer, baltimoresun.com/maryland/carroll, "College Football: McDaniel quarterback position battle heating up," 27 Aug. 2019

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'native.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

native

Definition of native

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Choose the Right Synonym for native

Examples of native in a Sentence

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