'Synthetic' definitions:

Definition of 'synthetic'

From: WordNet
adjective
Not of natural origin; prepared or made artificially; "man-made fibers"; "synthetic leather" [syn: man-made, semisynthetic, synthetic]
adjective
Involving or of the nature of synthesis (combining separate elements to form a coherent whole) as opposed to analysis; "limnology is essentially a synthetic science composed of elements...that extend well beyond the limits of biology"- P.S.Welch [syn: synthetic, synthetical] [ant: analytic, analytical]
adjective
Systematic combining of root and modifying elements into single words [ant: analytic, uninflected]
adjective
Of a proposition whose truth value is determined by observation or facts; "`all men are arrogant' is a synthetic proposition" [syn: synthetic, synthetical] [ant: analytic, analytical]
adjective
Artificial as if portrayed in a film; "a novel with flat celluloid characters" [syn: celluloid, synthetic]
adjective
Not genuine or natural; "counterfeit rhetoric that flourishes when passions are synthetic"- George Will
noun
A compound made artificially by chemical reactions [syn: synthetic, synthetic substance]

Definition of 'Synthetic'

From: GCIDE
  • Synthetic \Syn*thet"ic\, Synthetical \Syn*thet"ic*al\, a. [Gr. ?: cf. F. synth['e]tique.]
  • 1. Of or pertaining to synthesis; consisting in synthesis or composition; as, the synthetic method of reasoning, as opposed to analytical. [1913 Webster]
  • Philosophers hasten too much from the analytic to the synthetic method; that is, they draw general conclusions from too small a number of particular observations and experiments. --Bolingbroke. [1913 Webster]
  • 2. (Chem.) Artificial. Cf. Synthesis, 2. [1913 Webster]
  • 3. (Zool.) Comprising within itself structural or other characters which are usually found only in two or more diverse groups; -- said of species, genera, and higher groups. See the Note under Comprehensive, 3. [1913 Webster]
  • Synthetic language, or Synthetical language, an inflectional language, or one characterized by grammatical endings; -- opposed to analytic language. --R. Morris. [1913 Webster]

Synonyms of 'synthetic'

From: Moby Thesaurus