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| neu·tral [ ntrəl ] |
adjective |
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| Definition: |
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1. taking no sides: belonging to, favoring, or assisting no side in a war, dispute, contest, or controversy
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2. without distinctive qualities: possessing no distinctive quality or revealing no attitude or feeling
 She was careful to explain the problem in neutral terms.
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3. without hue: describes a color such as white, black, or gray that is not in the spectrum
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4. not strongly colored: not strongly or strikingly colored and thus relatively inconspicuous and able to blend easily with other colors
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5. biology Same as neuteradj (sense 1)
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6. chemistry not acid or alkaline: neither acidic nor alkaline
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7. physics with zero electric charge: having zero electric charge or potential
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8. mechanical engineering with no motion transmitted: describes a gear or position in which no power is transmitted from the engine to the moving parts
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9. phonetics pronounced with tongue midway: describes a vowel articulated with the tongue relaxed and in the mid-central position, as, e.g. in the first syllable of "away"
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noun (plural neu·trals) |
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| Definition: |
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1. automotive gear with no motion transmitted: a gear in which no power is transmitted from the engine to the moving parts
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2. politics nonaligned person or thing: a person or country that remains neutral in a war, dispute, contest, or controversy
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| [15th century. < Latin neutralis "of neuter gender" < neuter (see neuter)] |
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 neu·tral·ly adverb |
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