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definitions

authoritative

[uh-thawr-i-tey-tiv, uh-thor-]
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adjective

having due authority; having the sanction or weight of authority: an authoritative opinion.
substantiated or supported by documentary evidence and accepted by most authorities in a field: an authoritative edition of Shakespeare; an authoritative treatment of a subject.
having an air of authority; accustomed to exercising authority; positive; peremptory; dictatorial: said with an authoritative air.

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Nearby words

  1. authorisation,
  2. authorise,
  3. authoritarian,
  4. authoritarian personality,
  5. authoritarianism,
  6. authority,
  7. authority control,
  8. authority figure,
  9. authority file,
  10. authorization

Origin of authoritative

First recorded in 1595–1605; authorit(y) + -ative
Related forms
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for authoritatively

British Dictionary definitions for authoritatively

authoritative

adjective

recognized or accepted as being true or reliablean authoritative article on drugs
exercising or asserting authority; commandingan authoritative manner
possessing or supported by authority; officialan authoritative communiqué
Derived Formsauthoritatively, adverbauthoritativeness, noun
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
Word Origin and History for authoritatively

authoritative

adj.

c.1600, "dictatorial" (a sense now restricted to authoritarian), from Medieval Latin authoritativus (see authority). Meaning "possessing authority" is recorded from 1650s; that of "proceeding from proper authority" is from 1809. Related: Authoritatively; authoritativeness.

Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper