affirmative

American  

[uh-fur-muh-tiv] / əˈfɜr mə tɪv /

adjective

1. affirming or assenting; asserting the truth, validity, or fact of something.

2. expressing agreement or consent; assenting.

   an affirmative reply.

3. positive; not negative.

4. Logic. noting a proposition in which a property of a subject is affirmed, as “All men are happy.”

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noun

• affirmatives
  plural

1. something that affirms or asserts; a positive statement or proposition; affirmation.

2. a reply indicating assent, as Yes or I do.

3. a manner or mode that indicates assent.

   a reply in the affirmative.

4. the side, as in a debate, that affirms or defends a statement that the opposite side denies or attacks.

   to speak for the affirmative.

interjection

1. (used to indicate agreement, assent, etc.).

   “Is this the right way to Lake George?” “Affirmative.”

affirmative British  

/ əˈfɜːmətɪv /

adjective

1. confirming or asserting something as true or valid

   an affirmative statement

2. indicating agreement or assent

   an affirmative answer

3. logic

   1. (of a categorial proposition) affirming the satisfaction by the subject of the predicate, as in all birds have feathers; some men are married

   2. not containing negation Compare negative

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noun

1. a positive assertion

2. a word or phrase stating agreement or assent, such as yes (esp in the phrase answer in the affirmative )

3. logic an affirmative proposition

4. the side in a debate that supports the proposition

1. military a signal codeword used to express assent or confirmation

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• overaffirmative
  adjective
• preaffirmative
  adjective
• quasi-affirmative
  adjective
• affirmatively
  adverb
• overaffirmatively
  adverb
• quasi-affirmatively
  adverb

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• affirmatives
  plural

Etymology

Origin of affirmative

1400–50; < Latin affirmātīvus, equivalent to affirmāt- ( see affirmation) + -īvus -ive; replacing late Middle English affirmatyff < Middle French < Latin

Explanation

Something affirmative expresses agreement or approval, like the affirmative nod your mother gives you when you ask to be excused from the dinner table. A formal way of saying "Yes" is "Affirmative!" Anything affirmative is approving of something: affirmative words support someone or something. Being affirmative is the opposite of being negative or contradicting. A pat on the back is affirmative so is a signature you need to complete a form. Also, you can use affirmative as a formal way of saying yes to something. This is common in the military. It might sound a little odd, but if your teacher asked, "Does 10 plus 10 equal 20?" you could answer, "Affirmative!"

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

affirmative affirmatives

Bollinger in 2003, upheld colleges and universities engaging in affirmative action, with Justice O’Connor writing an opinion.

From Slate ● Sep. 11, 2026

“You’ve got the backlash against affirmative action without the affirmative action,” said Sunder Katwala, the director of British Future, a think tank focused on race and immigration.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 18, 2026

There have been hunger strikes demanding farmers' rights, affirmative action, environmental protections, anti-corruption laws and the repeal of controversial security legislation.

From BBC ● Jul. 16, 2026

Too much of the program is made up of tedious movies by beloved Cannes veterans — essentially affirmative action for auteurs.

From Los Angeles Times ● May 19, 2026

Fred barked once to answer in the affirmative.

From "Dog Squad" by Chris Grabenstein

Most soiree veterans are accustomed to getting an influx of “yes” confirmations not long after the invites go out and another wave of affirmatives days before the party starts.

From Salon ● Nov. 22, 2023

For the kids in the working-class families, the ratio was twelve affirmatives to seven prohibitions, and in the welfare families it was five affirmatives to eleven prohibitions.

From The New Yorker ● Jan. 5, 2015

None the less the press busied itself with the affirmatives of all these denials for many days.

From Time Magazine Archive

For the past year the British working classes have grown increasingly aware that they were getting two negatives where they wanted two affirmatives.

From Time Magazine Archive

The Retrieval Squad roared military-type affirmatives, coaxing as many metallic noises from their weapons as possible.

From "Artemis Fowl" by Eoin Colfer