lusus naturae
From Wiktionary, the free dictionary
Etymology
Unadapted borrowing from Latin lūsus nātūrae (“sport of Nature”),[1] from lūsus (“playing”, “sport”)[1] + nātūrae (“of Nature”), genitive singular of nātūra (“Nature”). Plural from lūsūs nātūræ (“sports of Nature”), from lūsūs (“playings”, “sports”).
Pronunciation
- singular
- (Received Pronunciation) enPR: lo͞oʹsəs nətyo͝oəʹrē, lyo͞oʹsəs nətyo͝oəʹrē, IPA(key): /ˈluːsəs nəˈtjʊəɹiː/,[1] /ˈljuːsəs nəˈtjʊəɹiː/,[1]
- plural
- (Received Pronunciation) enPR: lo͞oʹso͞os nətyo͝oəʹrē, lyo͞oʹso͞os nətyo͝oəʹrē, IPA(key): /ˈluːsuːs nəˈtjʊəɹiː/, /ˈljuːsuːs nəˈtjʊəɹiː/
Noun
lusus naturae (plural lusus naturae)
- (historical, originally) A sportive quality in Nature to which abnormal forms were formerly ascribed; a supposed capricious act of Nature regarded as the cause and origin of anomalies in a given organism.
- 1665, Robert Hooke, Micrographia, section XXII:
- I have observ'd some meshes to have 5, 6, 7, 8, or 9. sides, and some to have onely one, so exceeding various is the Lusus Naturæ in this body.
- (countable) An organism exhibiting marked such deviation from the norm, seeming to be the result of sportive design; a freak of nature.
Alternative forms
- lusus naturæ (rare, archaic, singular and plural)
- lusûs naturæ (rare, nonstandard, archaic, plural only)
Synonyms
- (capricious act of Nature): God's joke
- (variant of seemingly sportive design): freak of nature; lusus (dated, 19 the century)[1]
References
- “‖lusus naturæ” listed in the Oxford English Dictionary [2nd Ed.; 1989]
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