connective

American  

[kuh-nek-tiv] / kəˈnɛk tɪv /

adjective

1. serving or tending to connect.

   connective remarks between chapters.

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noun

1. something that connects.

2. Grammar. a word used to connect words, phrases, clauses, and sentences, as a conjunction.

3. Botany. the tissue joining the two cells of the anther.

connective British  

/ ˌkɒnɛkˈtɪvɪtɪ, kəˈnɛktɪv /

adjective

1. serving to connect or capable of connecting

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noun

1. a thing that connects

2. grammar logic

   1. a less common word for conjunction

   2. any word that connects phrases, clauses, or individual words

   3. a symbol used in a formal language in the construction of compound sentences from simpler sentences, corresponding to terms such as or, and, not, etc, in ordinary speech

3. botany the tissue of a stamen that connects the two lobes of the anther

4. anatomy a nerve-fibre bundle connecting two nerve centres

Other Word Forms

• connectively adverb
• connectivity noun
• nonconnective adjective
• nonconnectively adverb
• nonconnectivity noun
• preconnective adjective
• quasi-connective adjective
• quasi-connectively adverb

Etymology

Origin of connective

First recorded in 1645–55; connect + -ive

Explanation

Something that's connective connects or attaches things to each other. In grammar, connective words such as "like" or "than" connect clauses or phrases. A connective device on your computer, like a modem, connects it with the Internet, and connective tissue in your body connects organs, tissues, bones, muscles, and other body parts to each other. Sometimes a connective word or conjunction is also called a connective. The word comes from the verb connect, from the Latin root conectere, "join together."

Example Sentences

Cooling, yes, but also connective — pulling together the richness of the pork, the sweetness of the raisins, the brightness of the herbs into something that feels cohesive, complete.

From Salon • Apr. 10, 2026

The most effective programs integrate economic reasoning as the connective tissue that makes financial concepts coherent and transferable.

From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 26, 2026

It supports and strengthens skin, nails, bones and connective tissues, including tendons and cartilage.

From BBC • Feb. 26, 2026

"Our observations are consistent across multiple length scales and link connective tissue stiffening to altered biochemical signaling in cancer cells."

From Science Daily • Jan. 24, 2026

These relations may be conveyed without even using a connective word: all the writer has to do is write the statements using parallel syntax and vary only the words that indicate the difference.

From "The Sense of Style" by Steven Pinker