spontaneous

Intermediatezipf 3.71

Pronunciation

/spɒnˈteɪniəs/(spon-TAY-nee-us)

Part of speech

adjectiveneutral

Chinese

自发的;自然而然的(没有经过事先计划,出于内在冲动而发生的)

Definition

Happening or arising naturally without planning or external cause; done on impulse.

Word family

  • spontaneously/spɒnˈteɪniəsli/(adv)自发地
  • spontaneity/ˌspɒntəˈniːɪti/(n)自发性

Collocations

  • spontaneous applause
  • spontaneous combustion
  • spontaneous reaction
  • act spontaneously
  • spontaneous decision

Examples

  1. 1.The crowd broke into spontaneous applause before the performance had even ended. (unplanned reaction)
  2. 2.She's known for her spontaneous travel plans — she once booked a flight to Tokyo with four hours' notice. (impulsive)

Synonyms

  • impromptu/ɪmˈprɒmptjuː/done without preparation, usually for a speech or performance
  • impulsive/ɪmˈpʌlsɪv/acting on sudden urge, often recklessly
  • unplanned/ʌnˈplænd/neutral; simply not planned

Etymology

from Latin "spontaneus" = of one's own will, from "sponte" = willingly