appositive

[ uh-poz-i-tiv ]

/ əˈpɒz ɪ tɪv /

Grammar

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noun

a word or phrase in apposition.

adjective

placed in apposition.

(of an adjective or adjectival phrase) directly following the noun it modifies.

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Origin of appositive

First recorded in 1685–95; apposit(ion) + -ive

OTHER WORDS FROM appositive

ap·pos·i·tive·ly, adjective

Words nearby appositive

apportionment, apposable, appose, apposite, apposition, appositive, appraisal, appraisal drilling, appraise, appreciable, appreciate

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use appositive in a sentence

The appositive is a word or a group of words inserted lo explain the noun that it follows.
Business English|Rose Buhlig
To distinguish an appositive clause from a restrictive clause, the former is called a non-restrictive clause.
Business English|Rose Buhlig
One use of the comma is to set off an appositive for example Mr Kearne the buyer has left the city.
Business English|Rose Buhlig
The proper noun comes first in appositive expressions: lfred cyning, Sidroc eorl, Hahmund bisceop.
Anglo-Saxon Grammar and Exercise Book|C. Alphonso Smith

These compounds are usually nouns, or adjectives and participles used in a sense more appositive than attributive.
Anglo-Saxon Grammar and Exercise Book|C. Alphonso Smith

British Dictionary definitions for appositive

appositive

/ (əˈpɒzɪtɪv) /

adjective

grammar

standing in apposition
another word for nonrestrictive

of or relating to apposition

noun

an appositive word or phrase

Derived forms of appositive

appositively, adverb

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012