: being or relating to a semiconductor in which the concentration of charge carriers is characteristic of the material itself instead of the content of any impurities it contains
2
a
: originating or due to causes within a body, organ, or part
an intrinsic metabolic disease
b
: originating and included wholly within an organ or part
He is the ideal courtier. His nobility is intrinsic, and so he can drape himself in this purple cloak of tasteful modernity, make a cocktail of past and present, the cream of both. Noah Charney, The Art Thief, 2007Subatomic particles have an intrinsic orientation known as spin, which can point in one of two directions, conventionally called "up" and "down." Abraham Loeb, Scientific American, November 2006Yet despite the digital culture's endless celebrations of diversity … there is a certain mindless repetition intrinsic to the Internet, where ideas and software multiply a thousandfold with one click; where the lure of wider communication drives users toward an ultimate "interoperability" and, hence, toward an ultimate uniformity. Julian Dibbell, Harper's, August 2001 the intrinsic value of a gem the intrinsic brightness of a star
Recent Examples on the WebThese egg-laying animals have little to no intrinsic embryo loss. Kathryn Kavanagh, The Conversation, 1 Sep. 2022 New research shows that protons contain intrinsic charm quarks. Robert Lea, Popular Mechanics, 30 Aug. 2022 And as Frankfurter discovered in his old age, such coalitions have no intrinsic investment in juridical positions on the proper role of the court. John Fabian Witt, The New Republic, 26 Aug. 2022 Research has shown that office incentives, such as celebratory happy hours and lavish office perks, result in temporary compliance as opposed to nurturing long-term, intrinsic drive. Stuf, Forbes, 25 Aug. 2022 Covid-19 vaccinations and infections have changed our immune defenses over time, making head-to-head matchups between past and present variants harder, including for characteristics like intrinsic severity of the disease. Brianna Abbott, WSJ, 11 Aug. 2022 Clarke, who served as the chief safety officer for Boston’s transit system, said safety will be intrinsic. Justin George, Washington Post, 27 July 2022 The inequality of audience experience is intrinsic to the performing arts and unique to them. Janet Malcolm, The New Yorker, 14 July 2022 The deliberate nature of those improvements is intrinsic to their position. Globe Staff, BostonGlobe.com, 7 July 2022 See More
Word History
Etymology
French intrinsèque internal, from Late Latin intrinsecus, from Latin, adverb, inwardly; akin to Latin intra within — more at intra-