intrinsic en · ADJ
Pronunciation
- (Southern-England) audio
- /ɪnˈtɹɪn.zɪk/
Etymology
From Middle French intrinsèque, from Latin intrīnsecus (“on the inside, inwardly”), from *intrim, an assumed adverbial form of inter (“within”) + secus (“by, on the side”).
Meanings
-
Innate, inherent, inseparable from the thing itself, essential.
the intrinsic value of gold or silver
He was better qualified than they to estimate justly the intrinsic value of Grecian philosophy and refinement.
1832, [Isaac Taylor], Saturday Evening. […], London: Holdsworth and Ball, →OCLC:the intrinsic merit of an action
The same way that the wildfire smoke from Canada recently made the sky in Boston look bright red, astronomical objects can also appear redder than their intrinsic color when you see them through a veil of dust.
2026 August 12, Robert Simcoe, quotee, “Newly discovered "black hole star" could solve mystery of strange red dots spotted in the early universe”, in CBS News, archived from the original on 12 Aug 2026:
- (of a body part) Situated, produced, secreted in, or coming from inside an organ, tissue, muscle or member.
-
(of a function or operator) Built-in.
In addition to the Fortran operators that are intrinsic (built in), there may be user-defined operators in expressions.
1997, Jeanne C. Adams, Walter S. Brainerd, Jeanne T. Martin, Brian T. Smith, Jerrold L. Wagener, Fortran 95 Handbook: Complete ISO/ANSI Reference, MIT Press, →ISBN, page 192:
Forms
| Spelling | Features | Labels | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| more intrinsic | Degree=Cmp | lexicographic | |
| most intrinsic | Degree=Sup | lexicographic | |
| intrinsick | alternative, obsolete | lexicographic |
Antonyms
alien · foreign · extrinsic · external · extrinsic
Deriveds
intrinsic semiconductor · subintrinsic · intrinsify · intrinsic tracer · intrinsic motivation · intrinsicoid · intrinsic protein · unintrinsic · nonintrinsic · intrinsically · intrinsicality · intrinsic value · intrinsic reward · intrinsicness · for all intrinsic purposes · intrinsic brightness
Hypernyms
Hyponyms
Relateds
birthright · instilled · installed · natural · to the manner born · warp and woof · ubiquitous · second nature · like a duck takes to water · native · ipso facto · by nature · internalized · interwoven · integrated · internal
Synonyms
indigenous · infused · inbuilt · connatural · native · innate · unlearned · built-in · congenite · congenital · resident · proper to · inborn · intrinsic · radical · to the manner born · immanent · ingenite · inborn · natural · connate · inherent · genetous · essential · inwrought · innate · inbred · integral · essential · ingrained · inherent · unlearnt
Translations (58)
cmn 本质的 /本质 (inherent) · ru свойственный (inherent) · fr inhérent (inherent) · sv inneboende (inherent) · nb indre (inherent) · ca intrínsec (situated or produced inside an organ) · gl intrínseco (inherent) · ca intrínsec (inherent) · nn ibuande (inherent) · sh у̀рођен (inherent) · fi erottamaton (inherent) · bg свойствен (inherent) · fi luontainen (inherent) · oc intrinsec (inherent) · pt intrínseco (inherent) · ru прису́щий (inherent) · fr immanent (inherent) · sh интринзичан (inherent) · cmn 本質的 (inherent) · fr intrinsèque (situated or produced inside an organ) · enm kynde (inherent) · el σύμφυτος (situated or produced inside an organ) · fi olennainen (inherent) · sh svòjstven (inherent) · da egentlig (inherent) · bg вътрешен (situated or produced inside an organ) · ru имманентный (inherent) · es intrínseco (inherent) · nl intrinsiek (inherent) · th จากภายใน (inherent) · th ในตัว (inherent) · pt intrínseco (situated or produced inside an organ) · fr intrinsèque (inherent) · da indre (inherent) · ru составляющий (situated or produced inside an organ) · sh ùrođen (inherent) · de von sich (inherent) · sh intrìnzičan (inherent) · nb iboende (inherent) · bg присъщ (inherent) · ro intrinsec (inherent) · pl rzeczywisty (inherent) · de intrinsisch (inherent) · et sisemine (inherent) · de in sich (inherent) · es intrínseco (situated or produced inside an organ) · it intrinseco (inherent) · it intrinseco (situated or produced inside an organ) · ko 본질적인 (inherent) · sh prìrođen (inherent) · sh сво̀јствен (inherent) · pl wewnętrzny (inherent) · de an sich (inherent) · da iboende (inherent) · hi जन्मजात (inherent) · el εγγενής (inherent) · sh прирођен (inherent) · enm kyndely (inherent)