descriptive

Hello, you have come here looking for the meaning of the word descriptive. In DICTIOUS you will not only get to know all the dictionary meanings for the word descriptive, but we will also tell you about its etymology, its characteristics and you will know how to say descriptive in singular and plural. Everything you need to know about the word descriptive you have here. The definition of the word descriptive will help you to be more precise and correct when speaking or writing your texts. Knowing the definition ofdescriptive, as well as those of other words, enriches your vocabulary and provides you with more and better linguistic resources.

English

Etymology

From Latin dēscriptīvus (containing a full description).

Pronunciation

Adjective

descriptive (comparative more descriptive, superlative most descriptive)

  1. Of, relating to, or providing a description.
  2. (grammar) Of an adjective, stating an attribute of the associated noun (as heavy in the heavy dictionary).
  3. (linguistics) Describing the structure, grammar, vocabulary and actual use of a language.
  4. (sciences, philosophy) Describing and seeking to classify, as opposed to normative or prescriptive.
    • 2012 March-April, John T. Jost, “Social Justice: Is It in Our Nature (and Our Future)?”, in American Scientist, volume 100, number 2, archived from the original on 13 February 2012, page 162:
      He draws eclectically on studies of baboons, descriptive anthropological accounts of hunter-gatherer societies and, in a few cases, the fossil record.

Antonyms

Hyponyms

Derived terms

Translations

The translations below need to be checked and inserted above into the appropriate translation tables. See instructions at Wiktionary:Entry layout § Translations.

Noun

descriptive (plural descriptives)

  1. (grammar) An adjective (or other descriptive word)

Derived terms

See also

Anagrams

French

Adjective

descriptive

  1. feminine singular of descriptif