au naturel

adverb

No English definition recorded for this entry.

Wiktionary

Pronunciation: /əʊ næt͡ʃʊˈɹɛl/ / /-tjʊ-/ / /ˌoʊ ˌnætəˈɹɛl/

adj

Etymology: Unadapted borrowing from French au naturel (“in the natural state; cooked plainly”), from au (“at the; in the; to the”) + naturel (“natural”) (ultimately borrowed from Latin nātūrālis (“of or relating to nature”), from nātūra (“natural world, nature”) + -ālis (suffix forming adjectives of relationship)). Nātūra is derived from nāscor (“to be born; to grow, spring forth”) (ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *ǵenh₁- (“to beget; to give birth; to produce”)) + -tūra (suffix forming action nouns denoting activities or their results).

In a natural state; without any artificial change; natural; also, done in a way to appear natural.
“This is my au naturel look. How do you like it?”
“[A]t his age, people of his country have odd prejudices. He may not make up; and he might feel a little offended. To say the truth, I think it is au naturel. There is a grey tint under the eye, which I don't think that any modern colours could have produced—perfectly Ludovico, perfectly. If he do make up, I should like very much to know where he gets his colour: […]”
In a natural state; without any artificial change; natural; also, done in a way to appear natural.
“She prefers to keep her private parts au naturel.”
“"There's nary a pubic hair in sight in most porn," wrote Cindy Gallop in Make Love Not Porn, "which puts a whole lot of grooming pressure on women and is actually rather depressing for those men who like women au naturel."”
Of food: prepared or served raw or very simply cooked.
“[F]ew of the French travellers who have lately visited our Isle appear to have been much gratified with their trip. They in general speak with great contempt of our national partiality for roast beef and potatoes "au naturel."”
Of a person: in a state of not wearing clothes; in the nude, naked.
“Bella was au naturel for that photo session.”
“And now here is Loola—Loola without the least pretension to education or good breeding, Loola au naturel with a musky redolence which, on second thought, has something really rather fascinating about it.”

adv

In a natural state; without any artificial change; naturally; also, in a way to appear natural.
“Well, few of us are blessed with flawless complexions such as yours, so if you want to go au naturel, that's fine by me.”
“Why did some women eschew makeup? It seemed to be a recent trend for her. Had her religious fiancé requested she go au naturel?”
In a natural state; without any artificial change; naturally; also, in a way to appear natural.
Of the preparation or serving of food: in a raw or very simply cooked manner.
“Our chef insists on preparing this cut au naturel.”
Of the action of a person: in a naked manner; without clothes; in the nude, nakedly.
“Bella loved posing au naturel for the artist.”