Etymologically
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supernatural

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Pronunciation

  • IPA: /ˌs(j)uː.pəˈnæ.tʃə.ɹəl/, /-tʃɹəl/ (UK); /ˌsu.pəɹˈnæ.tʃə.ɹəl/, /-tʃɹəl/ (US)[1]

Etymology

It is inherited from Middle English supernaturel, borrowed from Medieval Latin supernātūrālis (“above or beyond nature”),[2][3][4] from super- (“above”) and nātūra (“nature”) (see nature), with -ālis.[2][3][5] The Medieval Latin word is thought to have been coined by Thomas Aquinas.[2]

Earliest recorded meaning

Of or given by God, divine, heavenly: the early 15th century in Etymonline,[3] probably before 1425 (supernaturel) in Barnhart, with supernatural about 1443.[2] The OED's first quotation, for above nature, belonging to a higher realm, is from 1526.[6]

Semantic evolution

It was first used of revelation and the like;[3] the idea is being beyond the powers or laws of nature.[3] More than the natural or ordinary, abnormally great, is from 1533.[6] The noun, a supernatural being, is from 1729,[3][6] and the supernatural, what is above the course of nature, from 1830.[3][6] The association with ghosts has predominated since the 19th century, while the older religious sense survives in supernal.[3]

Timeline

  • probably before 1425 – supernaturel.[2]
  • 1526 – above nature.[6]
  • 1533 – extraordinary.[6]
  • 1729 – a supernatural being.[3][6]
  • 1830 – the supernatural.[3][6]

Modern meaning

Adjective

  1. Relating to existence outside the natural world, or to things that natural laws cannot explain.
  2. Relating to ghosts, spirits or occult beings.
  3. Relating to a deity or the direct exercise of divine power; miraculous.
  4. Exceeding the ordinary; abnormal.

Noun

  1. The supernatural: supernatural forces, beings or events.

Word family

  • supernaturally
  • supernaturalness
  • semisupernatural
  • supernaturalism
  • supernaturality
  • supernaturalize
  • unsupernatural
  • nonnatural
  • preternatural
  • supernormal
  • supranatural
  • unnatural
  • natural
  • nature
  • supernal
  • paranormal

Usage notes

The Century Dictionary distinguished what is supernatural, above nature, from the preternatural or extra-natural, outside nature, and the unnatural, contrary to nature.[3]

References

  1. ^ Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
  2. ^ a b c d e Barnhart, Robert K. (1988), The Barnhart Dictionary of Etymology
  3. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
  4. ^ Hoad, T. F., ed. (1986), The Concise Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology, Oxford: Clarendon Press
  5. ^ Merriam-Webster Unabridged Dictionary (2024), online ed., Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster
  6. ^ a b c d e f g h Simpson, J. A.; Weiner, E. S. C., eds. (1989), The Oxford English Dictionary, 2nd ed., Oxford: Clarendon Press