antisupernaturalist
|an-ti-su-per-nat-u-ral-ist|
🇺🇸
/ˌæn.tiˌsuː.pɚˈnætʃ.ə.rɪst/
🇬🇧
/ˌæn.tiˌsuː.pəˈnætʃ.ə.rɪst/
opposed to the supernatural
Etymology
'antisupernaturalist' is formed from the prefix 'anti-' (meaning 'against') + 'supernaturalist' (one who believes in or promotes supernatural explanations). 'supernatural' itself combines Latin-derived 'super-' ('above' or 'beyond') and 'natural' from Latin 'natura' ('nature').
'antisupernaturalist' developed by attaching the productive English prefix 'anti-' to the noun 'supernaturalist'. The element 'supernatural' came into English via Old French/Latin ('super' + 'naturalis'), and '-ist' is a common agentive suffix forming nouns (e.g. 'natural' → 'naturalist').
Initially the components meant 'against' + 'that which is above/beyond nature' (i.e. against belief in things beyond nature); the modern compound retains this meaning as 'opposed to supernaturalism' with little semantic shift.
Meanings by Part of Speech
Noun 1
a person who opposes belief in the supernatural or rejects supernatural explanations; an opponent of supernaturalism.
As an antisupernaturalist, she argued that reported miracles have natural explanations.
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Adjective 1
opposed to supernatural explanations or doctrines; rejecting the supernatural as an explanation.
His antisupernaturalist stance led him to favor scientific accounts over mystical ones.
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Last updated: 2025/09/11 02:28