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SPONTANEOUS
| Pronunciation (US): |  | (GB): | |
I. (adjective)
Sense 1
Meaning:
Said or done without having been planned or written in advance
Example:
he made a few ad-lib remarks
Synonyms:
ad-lib; spontaneous; unwritten
Classified under:
Similar:
unscripted (not furnished with or using a script)
Derivation:
spontaneousness (the quality of being spontaneous and coming from natural feelings without constraint)
Sense 2
Meaning:
Happening or arising without apparent external cause
Example:
a spontaneous abortion
Synonyms:
self-generated; spontaneous
Classified under:
Similar:
impulsive; unprompted (proceeding from natural feeling or impulse without external stimulus)
intuitive (spontaneously derived from or prompted by a natural tendency)
instinctive; natural (unthinking; prompted by (or as if by) instinct)
Antonym:
induced (brought about or caused; not spontaneous)
Derivation:
spontaneity (the quality of being spontaneous and coming from natural feelings without constraint)
Context examples:
About 4% of spontaneous peripheral nerve tumors, with cystic schwannomas being the most frequent type. 24 spontaneous and 28 ethylnitrosourea-induced tumors has been described by Turusov and Cabral, (1994).
(BDVI, Rat Strain, NCI Thesaurus)
In the majority of cases there is spontaneous recovery.
(Brachial Plexus Palsy, NCI Thesaurus)
A nail condition characterized by spontaneous separation of a fingernail or toenail from its nail bed.
(Onycholysis, NCI Thesaurus)
Let me be able to fancy that a better knowledge of my heart, and of my present feelings, will draw from her a more spontaneous, more natural, more gentle, less dignified, forgiveness.
(Sense and Sensibility, by Jane Austen)
The alternative pathway starts with the spontaneous conversion of C3 to an active protease.
(Alternative Complement Pathway, NCI Thesaurus/BIOCARTA)
The v-erbA oncogene potentiates cell transformation through inhibition of spontaneous differentiation of cells already transformed by the v-erbB gene and eliminates growth requirements of transformed erythroblasts.
(Oncogene ERB A, NLM, Medical Subject Headings)
Substrain C57BL/10 differs from other substrains at multiple loci, including H9, Igh2 and Lv, on chromosome 4 and has a high incidence of spontaneous mutations.
(C57BL/10 Mouse, NCI Thesaurus)
The concentration of a solute or dispersion above which spontaneous aggregation or precipitation occurs.
(Critical Concentration, NCI Thesaurus)
Drug-, radiation-induced, or spontaneous injuries to DNA that introduce deviations from its normal double-helical conformation.
(DNA Damage, NCI Thesaurus)
Cells responsible for spontaneous cytotoxicity of a variety of tumor cells without prior immunization.
(Natural killer cell, NLM, Medical Subject Headings)
