Neural
adjective
Definition
1. Relating to nerves or the nervous system.
2. Relating to computer systems designed to work like the human brain.
2. Relating to computer systems designed to work like the human brain.
Context Alive
The doctor explained that the patient’s hand numbness was caused by a problem in the spine. The neural pathways sending signals from the brain to the fingers had been compressed. With the right treatment, feeling would gradually return.
Meanings
2 meanings 1 Relating to Nerves or the Nervous System (Adjective) Very Common ▼
This meaning is about the nerves and nervous system in the body. Imagine touching a hot pan by accident. Your hand pulls away instantly before you even think about it. That’s because your neural pathways send a signal to your brain at incredible speed. This is neural — anything connected to nerves and how they work. You might read about “neural activity in the brain” or a doctor could mention “neural damage after an injury.” Or picture a baby learning to walk, building new neural connections with every step and fall. The word suggests the body’s electrical communication system. ✏️ Neural comes from the word “nerve” — it always describes something to do with how nerves send and receive signals.
Vivid ExampleAfter the car accident, the patient lost feeling in her left arm. Doctors discovered that the neural pathways between her spine and hand had been damaged. She began months of therapy to rebuild those connections.
2 Relating to Computer Systems That Mimic the Brain (Adjective) Very Common ▼
This meaning is about technology designed to work like the human brain. Imagine a translation app on your phone that understands full sentences, not just individual words. Behind it, a neural network processes language the way your brain would — learning patterns and improving over time. This is neural in the tech sense — systems built to think like humans. You might hear “this app uses neural processing” or someone could explain “the AI runs on a neural network.” Or think about photo apps that recognise faces using neural technology trained on millions of images. The word suggests intelligent, brain-like computing. ✏️ A “neural network” doesn’t have real nerves — it’s a computer system structured in layers that learn from data, inspired by how the brain works.
Vivid ExampleThe tech company announced a major upgrade to its voice assistant. A new neural engine would allow it to understand natural speech far better than before. Users immediately noticed the difference in accuracy and speed.
Examples from the Street
“ChatGPT is powered by a neural network — it basically learns the way a brain does.”
The AI behind it uses a computing system modelled on how the human mind processes information
“The doctor said the tingling in my fingers is a neural issue, not muscular.”
The specialist explained that the prickling feeling in my hands is related to my nerves, not my muscles
“All that language learning is building new neural pathways in your brain.”
Every bit of studying you do is creating fresh connections between the nerve cells in your mind
Common Patterns
neural pathways → routes along which signals travel through the nervous system
neural activity → electrical signals and processes happening in the brain or nerves
neural damage/injury → harm to the nerves or nervous system
neural connections → links between nerve cells that allow communication
neural development → the growth and formation of the nervous system
neural network → a computing system designed to learn and process information like a brain
neural network model → a specific AI system built on brain-inspired architecture
deep neural network → a complex, multi-layered AI system for advanced learning tasks
neural processing → computing that mimics how the brain handles information
neural machine translation → AI-powered language translation that learns from vast amounts of text
Collocations
3 collocationsneural network
a computing system inspired by the brain
neural pathways
connections in the brain that carry signals
neural activity
electrical signals firing in the brain
Example Sentences
12 examples
1
Repeating vocabulary regularly strengthens the neural pathways associated with memory and recall
Going over words on a consistent basis reinforces the brain connections responsible for storing and retrieving information.
2
Researchers measured neural activity in the brains of bilingual speakers and found some fascinating differences
Scientists monitored the electrical signals in the minds of people who speak two languages and discovered some remarkable contrasts.
3
The accident caused significant neural damage, and it may take years for the sensation in his hand to return fully
The incident inflicted serious harm to the nerves, and it could be a very long time before the feeling in his fingers comes back completely.
4
Babies form millions of neural connections in their first year of life — that’s why early stimulation is so important
Infants build millions of links between brain cells during their initial twelve months — that’s the reason providing sensory experiences early on matters so much.
5
Poor nutrition during pregnancy can affect neural development in the unborn child
An inadequate diet while carrying a baby can interfere with how the nervous system grows and forms in the developing infant.
6
The company uses a neural network to detect fraudulent transactions in real time
The firm relies on a brain-inspired computing system to spot suspicious financial activity the instant it happens.
7
Training a deep neural network requires enormous amounts of data and computing power
Teaching a complex, multi-layered AI system to perform well demands massive quantities of information and extremely powerful machines.
8
The latest neural network model can generate images, write essays, and even compose music
The newest brain-inspired AI system is capable of creating pictures, producing written pieces, and even putting together original songs.
9
Google Translate improved dramatically when it switched to neural machine translation
The quality of that popular online language tool jumped significantly when the company adopted AI-powered conversion technology that learns from huge volumes of text.
10
The phone’s chip includes a dedicated neural processing unit that makes the camera smarter
The device’s internal component contains a specialised brain-inspired computing section that helps the built-in lens take better photographs automatically.
Learner Examples
★
Every time you practise speaking a new language, you’re building neural pathways that make the next conversation a little easier
Each time you rehearse talking in a foreign tongue, you’re strengthening brain connections that make the following exchange slightly less difficult.
★
Students often don’t realise that learning is a physical process — it literally changes the neural connections in your brain
Learners frequently don’t understand that education involves actual biological change — it genuinely reshapes the links between cells inside your mind.
Phrasal Verbs & Idioms
0 items
Synonyms & Antonyms
4 items
Synonymsnerve-related
involving nerves
cerebral
related to the brain
neurological
of the nervous system
brain-based
originating in the brain