spontaneous

English

Etymology

Late Latin spontāneus, from Latin sponte (suā) (“of one's free will, voluntarily”).

Pronunciation

• (Received Pronunciation) IPA^(key): /spɒnˈteɪ.ni.əs/
• (US) IPA^(key): /spɑnˈteɪ.ni.əs/
• Rhymes: -eɪniəs

• Audio (US)

  (file)

Adjective

spontaneous (comparative more spontaneous, superlative most spontaneous)

1. Self-generated; happening without any apparent external cause.

   He made a spontaneous offer of help.

2. Done by one's own free choice, or without planning.
3. Proceeding from natural feeling or native tendency without external or conscious constraint
4. Arising from a momentary impulse
5. Controlled and directed internally; self-active; spontaneous movement characteristic of living things
6. Produced without being planted or without human cultivation or labor.
   • 1751, Tobias Smollett, The Adventures of Peregrine Pickle, vol. IV, ch. 106:

     [H]e persisted in his design; and, because he would not make his wants known, actually subsisted for several days on hips, haws and sloes, and other spontaneous fruits which he gathered in the woods and fields.

7. Random.
8. Sudden, without warning.

Synonyms

• (self-generated): autonomous
• (done by one's own free choice): autonomous
• (proceeding from natural feeling...): autonomous
• (sudden, without warning): abrupt, precipitous, subitaneous; see also Thesaurus:sudden

Derived terms

• spontaneity
• spontaneously

Related terms

• spontaneous combustion

Translations

self generated; happening without any apparent external cause

• Assamese: স্বতঃস্ফুৰ্ট (sotosphurt)
• Catalan: espontani (ca)
• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 自发的

• Czech: spontánní (cs)
• Dutch: spontaan (nl)
• Esperanto: spontanea, spontana (eo)
• Finnish: spontaani (fi)
• French: spontané (fr), volontaire (fr)
• Galician: ventureiro
• German: spontan (de)
• Greek: αυθόρμητος (el) (afthórmitos), εθελοντικός (el) (ethelontikós)

  Ancient: αὐτόματος (autómatos)

• Hungarian: spontán (hu)

• Italian: spontaneo (it)
• Latin: spontāneus
• Malay: spontan
• Norwegian:

  Bokmål: spontan (no)

  Nynorsk: spontan

• Polish: spontaniczny (pl), samorzutny (pl) (physics, chemistry)
• Portuguese: espontâneo (pt)
• Romanian: spontan (ro)
• Russian: спонта́нный (ru) (spontánnyj), самопроизво́льный (ru) (samoproizvólʹnyj)
• Serbo-Croatian: spȍntān (sh)
• Spanish: espontáneo (es)
• Swedish: spontan (sv)
• Tagalog: kusa (tl)
• Turkish: kendiliğinden (tr), spontan (tr)

done by one's own free choice, or without planning

• Czech: spontánní (cs)
• Finnish: spontaani (fi), oma-aloitteinen (fi), omaehtoinen
• French: spontané (fr)
• Galician: espontáneo
• German: spontan (de)
• Greek: αυθόρμητος (el) (afthórmitos), αβίαστος (el) (avíastos)
• Hungarian: spontán (hu)
• Italian: spontaneo (it)

• Latin: extemporālis
• Polish: spontaniczny (pl)
• Portuguese: espontâneo (pt)
• Romanian: spontan (ro)
• Russian: доброво́льный (ru) (dobrovólʹnyj)
• Scottish Gaelic: saor-thoileach
• Serbo-Croatian: spȍntān (sh)
• Swedish: spontan (sv)

proceeding from natural feeling or native tendency without external constraint

• Assamese: সহজাত (xohozat)
• Catalan: espontani (ca)
• Czech: spontánní (cs)
• French: spontané (fr)

• Greek: αυθόρμητος (el) (afthórmitos), πηγαίος (el) (pigaíos), ενστικτώδης (el) (enstiktódis)
• Serbo-Croatian: spȍntān (sh)
• Spanish: espontáneo (es)
• Swedish: spontan (sv)

arising from a momentary impulse

• Catalan: espontani (ca)
• Czech: impulzivní
• Finnish: impulsiivinen (fi)
• French: impulsif (fr)

• Greek: παρορμητικός (el) (parormitikós), αυθόρμητος (el) (afthórmitos)
• Serbo-Croatian: spȍntān (sh), ȉmpulzīvan (sh)
• Spanish: espontáneo (es)
• Swedish: spontan (sv)

controlled and directed internally

• French: réflexe (fr)
• Greek: ακούσιος (el) (akoúsios)

• Swedish: reflexmässig

produced without being planted or without human labor

• Finnish: luonnollinen (fi)
• French: indigène (fr), endémique (fr)

• Galician: ventureiro

not apparently contrived or manipulated

• Finnish: spontaani (fi)
• French: naturel (fr), spontané (fr)

• Greek: αυθόρμητος (el) (afthórmitos), φυσικός (el) (fysikós)

random — see random

sudden, without warning

• Finnish: yllättävä (fi), äkillinen (fi)
• French: soudain (fr)
• Greek: ξαφνικός (el) (xafnikós)
• Hungarian: spontán (hu)

• Norwegian:

  Bokmål: plutselig (no)

  Nynorsk: plutseleg

• Persian: خود جوش، داوطلبانه، ناگهانی‎

The translations below need to be checked and inserted above into the appropriate translation tables, removing any numbers. Numbers do not necessarily match those in definitions. See instructions at Wiktionary:Entry layout § Translations.

Translations to be checked

• Dutch: ^{(please verify)} spontaan (nl)

• Spanish: ^{(please verify)} espontáneo (es)