derivative

Sometimes der·i·vate

[dih-riv-uh-tiv]

adjective

1. derived.

2. not original; secondary.

noun

1. something that has been derived.

2. Also called derived form. Grammar.,  a form that has undergone derivation from another, as atomic from atom.

3. Chemistry.,  a substance or compound obtained from, or regarded as derived from, another substance or compound.

4. especially British, differential coefficient. Also called differential quotient. Mathematics.,  the limit of the ratio of the increment of a function to the increment of a variable in it, as the latter tends to 0; the instantaneous change of one quantity with respect to another, as velocity, which is the instantaneous change of distance with respect to time.

5. a financial contract whose value derives from the value of underlying stocks, bonds, currencies, commodities, etc.

derivative

/ dɪˈrɪvətɪv /

adjective

1. resulting from derivation; derived

2. based on or making use of other sources; not original or primary

3. copied from others, esp slavishly; plagiaristic

noun

1. a term, idea, etc, that is based on or derived from another in the same class

2. a word derived from another word

3. chem a compound that is formed from, or can be regarded as formed from, a structurally related compound

   chloroform is a derivative of methane

4. maths

   1. Also called: differential coefficient.  first derivative. the change of a function, f( x ), with respect to an infinitesimally small change in the independent variable, x ; the limit of [f( a + Δ x )–f( a )] / Δ x , at x = a , as the increment, Δ x , tends to 0. Symbols: df( x )/d x , f′( x ), Df( x )

      the derivative of xn is nxn–1

   2. the rate of change of one quantity with respect to another

      velocity is the derivative of distance with respect to time

5. finance a financial instrument, such as a futures contract or option, the price of which is largely determined by the commodity, currency, share price, interest rate, etc, to which it is linked

6. psychoanal an activity that represents the expression of hidden impulses and desires by channelling them into socially acceptable forms

derivative

1. In calculus, the slope of the tangent line to a curve at a particular point on the curve. Since a curve represents a function, its derivative can also be thought of as the rate of change of the corresponding function at the given point. Derivatives are computed using differentiation.

Other Word Forms

• derivatively adverb
• derivativeness noun
• nonderivative adjective
• nonderivatively adverb
• underivative adjective
• underivatively adverb

Word History and Origins

Origin of derivative¹

First recorded in 1400–50; late Middle English derivatif, from Late Latin dērīvātīvus, equivalent to Latin dērīvāt(us) ( derivation ) + -īvus suffix; -ive

Example Sentences

It also recalls, without feeling derivative, the classic American dramas—Miller’s and others—in which fathers and sons, despite their best efforts to avoid it, turn into mortal enemies.

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There also are funds that use a combination of debt and derivatives to track gold’s price.

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Such energy sources would allow the project to produce environmentally clean hydrogen and its derivatives, which in turn are used to generate electricity and produce fertilizer.

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In response, Warner Bros. said “The Pitt” is not a “derivative work” of “ER.”

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“Eugenics plays prominently in the rhetoric being generated and is derivative of a legacy that good medicine and science should continue to shun.”

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Related Words

• by-product