sport of nature

noun

A natural object which by pure chance resembles some other thing.

OriginLatin lusus naturae →
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Meanings

nounsport of nature (plural sports of nature)

plural sports of nature

  1. historicalA natural object which by pure chance resembles some other thing.

    The dogma that organized fossils were mere sports of nature.

    1875, Charles Lyell, The Principles of Geology, volume 1, page 37

Origin

  1. Latinlusus naturae
  2. Englishsport of nature

Calque of Latin lusus naturae

More words from Latin

Full word history & related roots →
Cite this entry
APA

sport of nature. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 5, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/sport%20of%20nature

MLA

“sport of nature.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/sport%20of%20nature. Accessed November 5, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “sport of nature,” accessed November 5, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/sport%20of%20nature.

Source: sport of nature on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.