Definitions
from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition.
- adjective Produced artificially rather than by a natural process.
- adjective Lacking authenticity or genuineness; sham.
from The Century Dictionary.
- Made by or resulting from art, in distinction from that which is produced by or conformable to nature; artificial; conventional.
- Synonyms Artificial, Factitious, Unnatural. Artificial means done by art, as opposed to natural. That is unnatural which departs in any way from what is natural: as, unnatural excitement. An artificial or factitious demand in the market is one that is manufactured, the latter being the more laboriously worked up; a factitious demand exists only in the invention of one and the imagination of another; an unnatural demand is greater than the laws of trade would produce.
from the GNU version of the Collaborative International Dictionary of English.
- adjective Made by art, in distinction from what is produced by nature; artificial; sham; contrived; formed by, or adapted to, an artificial or conventional, in distinction from a natural, standard or rule; not natural
from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.
- adjective
Created byhumans ;artificial . - adjective
Counterfeit ,fabricated .
from WordNet 3.0 Copyright 2006 by Princeton University. All rights reserved.
- adjective not produced by natural forces
Etymologies
from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 4th Edition
from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License
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Examples
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Munchausen s syndrome is one of group of conditions known as factitious disorders.
Glenn D. Braunstein, M.D.: Munchausen's Syndrome: Stranger (and More Dangerous) Than Fiction M.D. Glenn D. Braunstein 2011
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It is in a class of disorders known as factitious disorders which involve "illnesses" whose symptoms are either self-induced or falsified by the patient ...
Polls: Hillary Narrowly Edges Obama In Four States, Huckabee Surging With GOP 2009
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In that context I feel like it isn't the established word factitious, but rather a new one meaning "half-factual, half-fictional".
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My sentiment and my reason combat more than ever the idea of factitious distinctions, the inequality of conditions imposed as a right acquired by some, as a loss deserved by others.
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Besides beer, the Egyptians had what Pliny calls factitious, or artificial, wine, extracted from various fruits, as figs, _myxas_, pomegranates, as well as herbs, some of which were selected for their medicinal properties.
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My sentiment and my reason combat more than ever the idea of factitious distinctions, the inequality of conditions imposed as a right acquired by some, as a loss deserved by others.
The George Sand-Gustave Flaubert Letters Sand, George, 1804-1876 1921
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My sentiment and my reason combat more than ever the idea of factitious distinctions, the inequality of conditions imposed as a right acquired by some, as a loss deserved by others.
The George Sand-Gustave Flaubert Letters Gustave Flaubert 1850
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It is known also that the Japan camphor, termed factitious, will evaporate till it wholly disappears, and at all stages of its diminution retain its full proportion of strength; which does not seem the property of an adulterated or compounded body.
The History of Sumatra Containing An Account Of The Government, Laws, Customs And Manners Of The Native Inhabitants William Marsden 1795
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The condition known as factitious disorder makes its sufferers believe that they are about to die at the hands of a terminal illness.
Softpedia News - Global Tudor Vieru 2010
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As the malevolent violence of the drug conflict begins to spread north over the border, the U.S. and Mexico are in no position to be engaging in what some would call factitious trade disputes.
Home 2009
yarb commented on the word factitious
Darrow had no idea how long he had sat there when he heard Anna's hand on the door. The effort of rising, and of composing his face to meet her, gave him a factitious sense of self-control.
- Edith Wharton, The Reef
June 24, 2008