nonnative

nonnative — 形容詞

1. used to describe a plant, animal, or other living thing that exists in an area w

1.形容詞B2
釋義

外來的

原本不在當地生長的物種

used to describe a plant, animal, or other living thing that exists in an area where it does not naturally occur, usually because people brought it there from somewhere else.

例句

Feng warned hikers that the nonnative ivy was strangling the oak trees in the valley.

Feng 警告登山客，外來的常春藤正纏死山谷裡的橡樹。

nonnative + plant noun

The fishery removed thousands of nonnative carp from the lake last spring.

漁場上個春天從湖中移除了數千條外來的鯉魚。

nonnative + animal noun

同義詞
  • introduced

    neutral biology term for a species brought from elsewhere

  • invasive

    stronger; specifically a nonnative species that spreads and causes harm

  • exotic

    older biology term; can sound positive (decorative plants) or neutral

反義詞
  • native

    naturally occurring in the area

  • indigenous

    more formal; lived there before human introduction

文法句型

nonnative + species/plant/animal

用法筆記

Subject is almost always a plant, animal, fish, insect, or microbe; rarely used of single individual creatures, more often of populations or species.

常見錯誤

❌The lion at the zoo is nonnative to Europe.
✅Lions are nonnative to Europe.
💡'nonnative' usually describes a species or group, not one captive specimen.

2. describing someone whose birthplace is different from their current home, or who

2.形容詞B2
釋義

非本地的

非當地出生或非母語使用者

describing someone whose birthplace is different from their current home, or whose mother tongue is something other than the language used around them.

例句

Nadia teaches English to nonnative speakers at the community college every Saturday morning.

Nadia 每週六上午在社區大學教非母語人士英文。

fixed phrase: nonnative speaker

As a nonnative resident of Kyoto, Liam still asks his neighbours about local festival rules.

身為京都的非本地居民，Liam 仍常向鄰居請教當地節慶的規矩。

nonnative + resident

同義詞
  • foreign

    broader; can sound less neutral than 'nonnative'

  • non-local

    vague about origin; just means 'not from around here'

  • expatriate

    noun, not adjective; specifically someone living abroad long-term

反義詞
  • native

    born or first-language in the place

文法句型

nonnative + speaker/resident

nonnative speaker of [language]

用法筆記

Distinguish from sense 1: when the noun is a person (speaker, resident, student, employee), this is sense 2. The most frequent collocation by far is 'nonnative speaker'.

常見錯誤

❌Christopher is a nonnative person.
✅Christopher is a nonnative English speaker.
💡almost always paired with a specific role noun (speaker, resident, user) rather than the bare word 'person'.

3. not part of the original group of people, especially the first peoples of North

3.形容詞C1
釋義

非原住民的

非當地原住民族群的人

not part of the original group of people, especially the first peoples of North or South America, who lived in a region before others arrived from outside.

例句

Tunde studied how nonnative settlers changed farming patterns across the Great Plains.

Tunde 研究非原住民的移居者如何改變了北美大平原的農耕方式。

nonnative + settlers/communities

The museum displays art made by both nonnative artists and members of the Lakota nation.

博物館同時展出非原住民藝術家以及拉科塔族成員的作品。

contrast with indigenous group name

同義詞
  • settler

    noun; someone who moved in from outside, often with colonial overtones

  • non-indigenous

    near-synonym; slightly more neutral in academic writing

反義詞
  • indigenous

    belonging to the original peoples of a region

  • native

    in this sense, refers specifically to First Peoples

文法句型

nonnative + community/settler

用法筆記

Distinguish from sense 2: this sense specifically contrasts with indigenous peoples of the Americas, not just 'people born elsewhere'. Often appears in history, anthropology, or land-rights contexts.

常見錯誤

❌Théo is nonnative because he moved here last year.
✅Théo is a nonnative speaker because he learned English as an adult.
💡sense 3 is about settler vs. indigenous identity, not recent arrival.