adjective
-
acquired or related by adoption
an adoptive father
-
of or relating to adoption Compare adopted
Usage
Although adoptive in the sense “acquired or related by adoption” can refer to either parent or child in such a relationship, adoptive is customarily applied to the parent ( her adoptive mother ) and adopted to the child ( their adopted son ).
Other Word Forms
- adoptively adverb
- unadoptive adjective
- unadoptively adverb
Etymology
Origin of adoptive
1400–50; < Latin adoptīvus; see adopt, -ive; replacing late Middle English adoptife < Middle French adoptif
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
The girls were adopted in 2012 aged four and five after a period in foster care - but later resumed contact with their mother, which was supported by their adoptive mother.
From BBC • Apr. 22, 2026
In 2021, they left their adoptive mother and moved to live with their birth mother.
From BBC • Apr. 22, 2026
And while his architecture was his great gift to his adoptive hometown — his art was his gift to himself.
From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 17, 2026
His comments come after a BBC investigation found that hundreds of adoptive parents had struggled to get help for their children or had been blamed for their emotional and behavioural difficulties.
From BBC • Mar. 18, 2026
“That was the director of the Dave Thomas Foundation for Adoption inviting us to Busch Gardens for an event later today. She also said we could bring other adoptive families with us.”
From "Three Little Words: A Memoir" by Ashley Rhodes-Courter
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
