Phrase guide

nature versus nurture

phrase · 1 senses · updated from the 2026-07-25 local source snapshot

Definitions and examples are grouped by meaning. Pronunciation, history, word forms, translations, descendants, synonyms, antonyms, derived terms, and related words appear whenever the source provides them.

Sound

Pronunciation

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1

phrase

Meaning 1

The longstanding academic inquiry into the relative contributions of innate biological factors (nature) and environmental influences or upbringing (nurture) to the development of human traits, behaviors, personality and psychology.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Topics: biology, genetics, human-sciences, medicine, natural-sciences, psychology, sciences

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

History

Etymology

The phrase was coined in the mid-1800s by the English Victorian polymath Francis Galton in discussion about the influence of heredity and environment on social advancement.