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noncommunicative

noncommunicative

1 8.1
Not willing or able to give information
  • adjective
  • /ˌnɒn.kəˈmjun.ɪ.kə.tɪv/
translation icon : no comunicativo
  • When he felt anxious, he often became noncommunicative, making it hard for his friends to reach out.

Examples

  • Conversely, the consultee may become noncommunicative or defensive.

    Academic text (2000)
  • The noncommunicative nature of the software made it difficult for users to understand how to troubleshoot problems.

  • Infants and other noncommunicative children.

    Academic text (2018)
  • My God, until you suddenly became noncommunicative and unresponsive... ...and you dumped me and then...

  • It has also been suggested that both impulsivity and noncommunicative speech can lead to social problems for children with ADHD (Saunders & Chambers, 1996).

    Academic text (2001)
  • Finally, I want to document the existence of reflector-mode narration (i.e., noncommunicative narrative in my schema).

    Academic text (1994)
  • During the meeting, her noncommunicative demeanor left everyone wondering what she was thinking about.

Synonyms

tight-lipped
vsnoncommunicative
18 5.7

Not willing to speak or give information

can mean unwilling or unable to share information without implying secrecy
reticent
vsnoncommunicative
17 7.9

Not willing to talk about thoughts or feelings easily

is broader, covering unwillingness or inability to share information or speak
uncommunicative
vsnoncommunicative
4 6.3

Not willing to talk or give information

also includes lack of ability, not just low inclination to speak
closemouthed
vsnoncommunicative
1 7.5

Not willing to talk or share information

may be unwilling or unable more generally, not only secretive silence
noncommunicating
vsnoncommunicative
6.8

Not willing or able to speak and answer questions

is the same meaning but uses a different grammatical word form
incommunicative
vsnoncommunicative
7.6

Unwilling to talk or answer questions

covers being unwilling or unable to share information, not only reluctance
tightlipped
vsnoncommunicative
7.1

Not willing to talk or answer questions

also covers unwillingness or inability beyond mere reserved speech
nonvocal
vsnoncommunicative
6.2

A person who does not say opinions or feelings openly

is broader, also covering unwillingness or inability to share information or speak
untalkative
vsnoncommunicative
6.2

Not talking much and often listening to others

is about unwillingness or inability, not merely a quiet habitual style
unconversant
vsnoncommunicative
9.1

Not comfortable joining small talk at parties or work

focuses on social awkwardness and lack of skill, not general unwillingness to share

Antonyms

Willing to talk and share information or feelings

How Communicative

responsive
  • Texting
4 4.4
reserved
3.7
noncommunicative
1 8.1
unresponsive
10 4.9

Surface Forms

noncommunicative positive

Morphology

noncommunicative = communicative (transparent) = non + communicative

Formed by the productive negating prefix 'non-' added to the adjective 'communicative', yielding a straightforward negation.

Etymology

Noncommunicative starts with non- meaning 'not' and the rest comes from a word meaning 'to share', the same idea you see in common and community. So noncommunicative describes a person or device that is 'not sharing' information, not talking or sending messages.