neutral

(no͞oˈtrəl, nyo͞oˈ-)

1. Not aligned with, supporting, or favoring either side in a war, dispute, or contest.
2. Belonging to neither side in a controversy: on neutral ground.
3. Belonging to neither kind; not one thing or the other.
4. Sexless; neuter.
5. Chemistry
   a. Of or relating to a solution or compound that is neither acidic nor alkaline.
   b. Of or relating to a compound that does not ionize in solution.
6. Physics
   a. Of or relating to a particle, an object, or a system that has neither positive nor negative electric charge.
   b. Of or relating to a particle, object, or system that has a net electric charge of zero.
7. Of or indicating a color, such as gray, black, or white, that lacks hue; achromatic.
8. Linguistics Pronounced with the tongue in a middle position, neither high nor low, as the a in around.

1. a. A nation nonaligned with either side in a war.
   b. A citizen of such a nation.
2. One who takes no side in a controversy: “I am by disposition one of life's neutrals, a human Switzerland” (John Gregory Dunne).
3. A neutral hue.
4. A position in which a set of gears is disengaged so that power cannot be transmitted.

Related Forms:

• neuˈtral·ly adverb

(no͞oˈtrəl, nyo͞oˈ-)

1. A confederacy of Iroquoian-speaking Native American peoples formerly inhabiting the northern shore of Lake Erie. The Neutral were destroyed by the Iroquois in the mid-17th century.
2. A member of this people.