Nature is a broad concept that encompasses the physical universe in general, but especially the world of Earth’s living things and their ecosystems, including the inorganic features thereof and natural phenomena such as the weather. The word "nature" comes from the Latin word natura, which literally means "birth" but was also used to mean "quality or characteristic," "universe," and "the course of things"—a plethora of usages that are retained in the English word today.

Salem Press Encyclopedia of Science, 2023. 3p.