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Glite Dictionary
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-ive

-ive

4.9
A word ending added to verbs to make adjectives meaning tending to or having a quality
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  • Specialized
translation icon : -ivo
  • Adding -ive to 'attract' forms 'attractive', meaning able to attract.

Examples

  • In 'creative', the suffix -ive means having the ability to create.

  • The word 'active' uses the suffix -ive to show someone who does things.

  • The creative team came up with innovative ideas.

  • He has a very active lifestyle.

  • The suffix -ive is added to the verb 'detect' to create the adjective 'detective', meaning related to investigation.

  • When we use the suffix -ive in 'destructive', it indicates something that tends to cause destruction.

  • In the adjective 'persuasive', the suffix -ive denotes having the quality of convincing others.

Surface Forms

-ive main

Etymology

The word -ive comes from the old Latin ending -ivus, which meant 'tending to' or 'having the quality of'. You can see this in words like active, creative, and attractive, where -ive makes an adjective that shows what someone or something is like.