Synonym Chooser

How is the word inborn different from other adjectives like it?

Some common synonyms of inborn are congenital, hereditary, inbred, and innate. While all these words mean "not acquired after birth," inborn suggests a quality or tendency either actually present at birth or so marked and deep-seated as to seem so.

her inborn love of nature

How do congenital and hereditary relate to one another, in the sense of inborn?

Both congenital and hereditary refer to what is acquired before or at birth, the former to things acquired during fetal development and the latter to things transmitted from one's ancestors.

a congenital heart murmur
eye color is hereditary

When can inbred be used instead of inborn?

The words inbred and inborn are synonyms, but do differ in nuance. Specifically, inbred suggests something either acquired from parents by heredity or so deeply rooted and ingrained as to seem acquired in that way.

inbred political loyalties

In what contexts can innate take the place of inborn?

The synonyms innate and inborn are sometimes interchangeable, but innate applies to qualities or characteristics that are part of one's inner essential nature.

an innate sense of fair play

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of inborn Naturally, jumping styles are not necessarily inborn, immutable traits. Bruce Y. Lee, Forbes.com, 26 Mar. 2025 Like so many inborn traits, the spiritual impulse for prayer can grow stronger, and just as easily grow weaker. Lynne Silva-Breen, Twin Cities, 7 Feb. 2025 Platt notes that this change in approach came at a time when popular ideas about race were shifting toward a focus on inborn, genetic differences. Livia Gershon, JSTOR Daily, 28 Jan. 2025 Marcy Thompson: Motherly love to this group would seem to have a particular definition, one that was inborn and could not be challenged, even using a psychoanalytic framework as Margarethe did. Marcy Thompson, Scientific American, 23 Jan. 2025 See All Example Sentences for inborn
Recent Examples of Synonyms for inborn
Adjective
  • Photograph: Courtesy of Sean Hartnoll For decades, physicists and mathematicians have wanted to show that these chaotic dynamics are not an artifact of the simplifying assumption of decoupling, but inherent to black holes.
    Lyndie Chiou, Wired News, 20 Apr. 2025
  • Watch less often and watch more than one network, taking inherent and obvious biases into account.
    Doug Ross, Chicago Tribune, 19 Apr. 2025
Adjective
  • These mutations were found to make up 15% of the early genetic alterations that increase colorectal cancer risk.
    Melissa Rudy, FOXNews.com, 25 Apr. 2025
  • Every genetic component must be meticulously selected and optimized for function.
    Kristofer Mussar, Forbes.com, 25 Apr. 2025
Adjective
  • For the Reposado expression, the tequila is then aged in American white oak barrels, a process that adds structure and refinement without overwhelming the agave's intrinsic character.
    Hudson Lindenberger, Forbes.com, 25 Apr. 2025
  • With more complete data, statisticians could then estimate the intrinsic value of activities through peoples’ stated and revealed preferences and create a framework for measuring consumption based on how people use their time rather than on material spending.
    Brian Deese, Foreign Affairs, 22 Apr. 2025
Adjective
  • People with celiac disease, a hereditary autoimmune disorder, have to eat a gluten-free diet.
    Katie Akin, Southern Living, 18 Apr. 2025
  • Huntington’s disease is a hereditary disorder that causes a progressive decline in thinking, memory, and the control of movements.
    Heidi Moawad, Verywell Health, 27 Mar. 2025
Adjective
  • Glyphosate is used widely as an integral part of raising crops including corn, soybeans and cotton genetically modified to resist its killer effect, and as a desiccant on potatoes, sugar beets, wheat and other crops just before harvest.
    John Klar, Baltimore Sun, 27 Apr. 2025
  • In Super Nintendo World, for example, restaurants and stores are integral parts of the narrative journey — offering moments of discovery and interaction, not simply transactions.
    Kate Hardcastle, Forbes.com, 27 Apr. 2025
Adjective
  • Understanding and regulating the trade in shark and ray meat is no longer optional but essential.
    Melissa Cristina Márquez, Forbes.com, 22 Apr. 2025
  • Every child in New York deserves the chance to learn basic literacy, numeracy, science, and civics — skills essential for participating in society, holding a job, and fulfilling civic duties like voting or serving on a jury.
    David Bloomfield, New York Daily News, 22 Apr. 2025
Adjective
  • Quoting the late American historian Yosef Hayim Yerushalmi, Horn said Jewish culture makes a distinction between history and memory, and Jews are more interested in memory: investing a historical event with eternal, inheritable meaning.
    Andrew Silow-Carroll, Sun Sentinel, 8 Apr. 2025
  • Our vision is that the future of design will have a long lasting inheritable quality.
    Sydney Gore, Architectural Digest, 6 Feb. 2025

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Cite this Entry

“Inborn.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/inborn. Accessed 2 May. 2025.

More from Merriam-Webster on inborn

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