interactive

[in-ter-ak-tiv]

adjective

1. acting one upon or with the other.

2. of or relating to a two-way system of electronic communications, as by means of television or computer.

   interactive communications between families using two-way cable television.

3. (of a computer program or system) interacting with a human user, often in a conversational way, to obtain data or commands and to give immediate results or updated information.

   For many years airline reservations have been handled by interactive computer systems.

interactive

/ ˌɪntərˈæktɪv /

adjective

1. allowing or relating to continuous two-way transfer of information between a user and the central point of a communication system, such as a computer or television

2. (of two or more persons, forces, etc) acting upon or in close relation with each other; interacting

interactive

1. If users receive real-time feedback from a computer so that they can modify the use of the machine, the hardware, software, or content, the system is said to be interactive.

Other Word Forms

• interactively adverb
• noninteractive adjective
• interactivity noun

Word History and Origins

Origin of interactive¹

First recorded in 1825–35; inter- + active

Example Sentences

In 1930, Doris Webster and Mary Alden Hopkins—a pair of American writers—published “Consider the Consequences,” an interactive novel with 43 possible endings.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

Allaire would go on to found companies like the Allaire Corporation, which focused on how to build interactive software on the internet, and Brightcove, which became a publicly listed online video platform.

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While an actor is recording lines, another team may be building the weapon they mention and making it interactive, while another group builds the explosion that the lines and weapon will be part of.

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‘The Hunger Games: On Stage’ debuts Wednesday at a custom-built London theater designed as an interactive arena with moving seats and immersive effects, which amplify the novel’s brutal themes.

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Ko, who co-produced the interactive drama featuring the teddy bear, told AFP that the 2019 protests were "a challenge to national security".

Read more on Barron's

Related Words

• bilateral 
• collective 
• reciprocal