preternatural
adjective
G. L. Dickinson
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Preternatural derives from the Latin phrase praeter naturam, which means "beyond nature." Medieval Latin scholars rendered the term as praeternaturalis, and that form inspired the modern English version. Unusual things are sometimes considered positive and sometimes negative, and throughout its history preternatural has been used to refer to both exceptionally good things and unnaturally evil ones. In its earliest documented uses in the 1500s, it tended to emphasize the strange, ominous, or foreboding, but by the 1700s, people were using it more benignly to refer to fascinating supernatural (or even heavenly) phenomena. Nowadays, people regularly use it to describe the remarkable abilities of exceptional humans.
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Examples of preternatural in a Sentence
Melena Ryzik, New York Times, 27 May 2024
The sunny-but-heavy riffing, preternatural hookiness and spiky sense of humor that defines a lot of the Breeders’ signature work – particularly on 1993 masterpiece Last Splash, the band’s commercial breakthrough – can be traced to Rodrigo’s own crackling pop-rock blasts.
—Andrew Unterberger, Billboard, 9 Apr. 2024
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“Preternatural.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/preternatural. Accessed 3 Jun. 2024.
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preternatural
adjective
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