autonomic

[ aw-tuh-nom-ik ]

adjective

1. autonomous.
2. of or relating to the autonomic nervous system.
3. Physiology. under the control of the autonomic nervous system.
4. Cell Biology. produced by internal forces or causes; spontaneous.

autonomic

/ ˌɔːtəˈnɒmɪk /

adjective

1. occurring involuntarily or spontaneously
2. of or relating to the autonomic nervous system
3. Alsoautonomous (of plant movements) occurring as a result of internal stimuli

Derived Forms

• ˌautoˈnomically, adverb

Other Words From

• auto·nomi·cal·ly adverb

Word History and Origins

Origin of autonomic¹

First recorded in 1825–35; autonom(y) + -ic

Example Sentences

Music can activate our autonomic nervous system and even cause shivers down the spine.

From Science Daily

"That may mean that we may be actually inducing a form of plastic effect on the brain-body interaction circuit that is also involved in autonomic functions like blood pressure and heart rate," Romo-Nava said.

From Science Daily

"Our future research will search for ways to block these complications and protect the adrenal gland from receiving 'false' autonomic nervous system information originating from the spinal cord below the lesion site."

From Science Daily

In a promising development, a research group has revealed that stimulating autonomic vagal nerves connected to the pancreas can improve the function and also increase the number of pancreatic β-cells in mice.

From Science Daily

"So it stands to reason that the communication between the autonomic nervous and immune systems determines whether heart muscle scarring will occur or whether the heart muscle can recover."

From Science Daily

Related Words

• autonomous
• nonpartisan
• self-reliant
• self-sufficient
• separate
• sovereign