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not taking part or giving assistance in a dispute or war between others:
a neutral nation during World War II.
not aligned with or supporting any side or position in a controversy:
The arbitrator was absolutely neutral.
of or belonging to a neutral state or party:
neutral territory.
of no particular kind, characteristics, etc.; indefinite:
a neutral personality that made no impression whatever; a sex-neutral job title.

gray; without hue; of zero chroma; achromatic.
matching well with many or most other colors or shades, as white or beige.

Botany, Zoology, .
not causing or reflecting a change in something:
It is believed that the new tax law will be revenue neutral.
Chemistry. exhibiting neither acid nor alkaline qualities:
neutral salts.
Physics.

(of a particle) having no charge.
(of an atom, molecule, collection of particles, fluid, or solid) having no net charge; ; not electrified.
not magnetized.

Phonetics. (of a vowel) pronounced with the tongue relaxed in a central position, as the a in alive; reduced.
a person or a nation that remains neutral, as in a controversy or war.
a citizen of a neutral nation during a war.
Machinery, Automotive. the position or state of disengaged gears or other interconnecting parts:
in neutral.
a neutral color.
Contemporary Examples

The Oracle counts the total opinions registered for each candidate, and rates each as positive, negative, neutral or mixed.
Election Oracle Methodology The Daily Beast October 19, 2010

Otherwise, the GOP will remain locked out of the White House and leave our nation stuck in neutral with a gridlocked government.
Can a Republican Win 270 Electoral Votes in 2016…or Ever? Myra Adams August 17, 2013

But no one would seriously contend that Roberts has been a neutral umpire.
John Roberts Upholds Obamacare and Rises Above Partisanship Howard Kurtz June 27, 2012

Like all great American companies, it needs to be perceived as nonpartisan, as a neutral player in the political and culture wars.
Starbucks’ Effort to Solve the Fiscal Cliff Probably Won’t Work Daniel Gross December 25, 2012

“We can’t leave our homes,” one resident of a neutral neighborhood next to Douma told The Daily Beast.
Inside the Syrian Bomb Plot Katie Paul July 17, 2012

Historical Examples

One of the rights of a belligerent nation which a neutral is bound to regard, is the right of blockade.
The Government Class Book Andrew W. Young

When I came to I put all the controls in neutral and came looking for you.
Astounding Stories of Super-Science, November, 1930 Various

I had promised to keep on neutral ground for three months, and a tête-à-tête on shipboard seemed hardly playing the game.
An Unknown Lover Mrs. George de Horne Vaizey

But he guessed that the neutral wouldn’t even have to lie very much.
Tales Of Hearsay Joseph Conrad

A neutral substance generated from citric acid must have one or more atoms of hydrogen replaced by silver.
Scientific American Supplement, No. 711, August 17, 1889 Various

adjective
not siding with any party to a war or dispute
of, belonging to, or appropriate to a neutral party, country, etc: neutral land
of no distinctive quality, characteristics, or type; indifferent
(of a colour such as white or black) having no hue; achromatic
(of a colour) dull, but harmonizing with most other colours
a less common term for neuter (sense 2)
(chem) neither acidic nor alkaline
(physics) having zero charge or potential
(rare) having no magnetism
(phonetics) (of a vowel) articulated with the tongue relaxed in mid-central position and the lips midway between spread and rounded: the word “about” begins with a neutral vowel
noun
a neutral person, nation, etc
a citizen of a neutral state
the position of the controls of a gearbox that leaves the transmission disengaged
adj.

late 15c., “composed of contrasting elements which, in proper proportion, neutralize each other,” from Middle French neutral, from Latin neutralis “of neuter gender,” from neuter (see neuter (adj.)). Chemistry sense is from 1660s. Sense of “not taking sides in a fight” (1540s) probably is from a similar meaning in Medieval Latin. Of colors, from 1821. Neutral corner is from boxing (1908).
n.

mid-15c., “one who remains neutral,” from Latin neutralis “of neuter gender,” (see neutral (adj.)). Meaning “disengaged position in gear mechanisms” is from 1912.

neutral neu·tral (nōō’trəl, nyōō’-)
adj.

Belonging to neither kind; not one thing or the other; indifferent.

Of or relating to a solution or compound that is neither acidic nor alkaline.

Of or relating to a compound that does not ionize in solution.

Of or relating to a particle, an object, or a system that has a net electric charge of zero.

neutral
(n’trəl)

Neither acid nor alkaline.

Having no inherent or net charge, especially electric charge.