I want to say that something is extremely challenging for both intrinsic and extrinsic reasons - for example, doing research on something happening on Neptune (intrinsic - Neptune is harder to observe) that is also politically charged (extrinsic - the politics get in the way of objectivity but are external to the thing itself).

I can say that, of course - I just did. But what if I wanted to use 'innate' (for its innate in-bornness) rather than 'intrinsic'? What is its antiword, if it exists? Perhaps some Latin way to say 'not inborn'?

Edit: I'm really specifically into reasons here, not skills or behaviours. An acquired vs. innate skill and a learned vs. innate behaviour are all well and good, but I don't think they are as good a fit for reasons.

  • You probably need to try to clarify your question. As far as I can tell, you already used a word for what you mean: external. You might look for synonyms to external, secondary, indirect, tangential, attendant, remote, distal. – Jim Reynolds Feb 7 '15 at 10:18

You can consider adventitious for reasons and ideas that are not innate.

It comes from from Medieval Latin adventitius "coming from abroad, extraneous," a corruption of Latin adventicius "foreign, strange, accidental," from advent- past participle stem of advenire "arrive". [etymonline]

  • coming from another source and not inherent or innate [MW]

  • Coming from outside or from an external source; added or occurring as a result of an external factor or of chance, rather than by design or inherent nature; extraneous, foreign; incidental. [OED]

Differences between innate and adventitious ideas from a philosophical standpoint:


[Audi, Robert, ed. (1995). Cambridge Dictionary of Philosophy]

  • I'm giving this answer based on OP's clarification. OP eliminated "acquired" and "learned" and OP already used "external" and "extrinsic" which might not fit. – 0.. Feb 7 '15 at 20:43

I would go with acquired, as in an acquired skill.

1. Gained by one's own efforts. TFD

Innate qualities require no effort.

  • I also agree with 'acquired'. – Raghuraman R Feb 7 '15 at 5:02

Another word is learned: acquired by experience, study, etc. As in learned behavior.

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