dissuasive
1
8.7
- adjective
- /dɪˈsweɪsɪv/
- Formal
:
disuasivo
- His warnings about the dangers of smoking served as a dissuasive influence on her decision to start.
Examples
-
Washington must balance persuasive and dissuasive tools in order to strengthen Beijing's cooperation.
Academic text (2011) -
It is quite possible that their frequent complaints about the negative representation of Mexicans functioned as a dissuasive force against the commercialization of U.S. films.
Academic text (2017) -
In light of these concerns, early reproductive guidelines for people living with HIV were dissuasive, and HIV-positive women who express a desire to have children continue to encounter the disapproval of the community and of health care workers.
Academic text (2011) -
The teacher used stories of past accidents as dissuasive examples to discourage reckless behavior among the students.
-
The government implemented strict penalties as a dissuasive measure to reduce crime rates in the city.
Synonyms
15
3.9
Causing someone to feel less confident or hopeful about trying something
3
7.6
Causing an action to stop or slow down
1
8.4
Making people or animals avoid something because it is unpleasant
1
8.1
To make someone feel afraid or less confident
Looking unfriendly or dangerous so people do not want to go near
Making people feel strong dislike or disgust
That makes something difficult to do or slow to happen
Antonyms
How Discouraging
Surface Forms
Morphology
dissuasive = dissuade (semi-transparent) = dis + suas + ive
The adjective is regularly derived from 'dissuade' with '-ive', but the stem change from 'dissuade' to 'dissuas-' makes the connection slightly less obvious.
Etymology
Dissuasive breaks into dis- 'away' and suade 'to advise', the same suade in persuade. So a dissuasive action 'advises away' — it makes someone less likely to do something.