conservative

[ kuhn-sur-vuh-tiv ]

/ kənˈsɜr və tɪv /

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See synonyms for: conservative / conservatively / conservativeness on Thesaurus.com

adjective

disposed to preserve existing conditions, institutions, etc., or to restore traditional ones, and to limit change.

cautiously moderate or purposefully low: a conservative estimate.

traditional in style or manner; avoiding novelty or showiness: conservative suit.

(often initial capital letter) of or relating to the Conservative party.

(initial capital letter) of, relating to, or characteristic of Conservative Jews or Conservative Judaism.

having the power or tendency to conserve or preserve.

Mathematics. (of a vector or vector function) having curl equal to zero; irrotational; lamellar.

noun

a person who is conservative in principles, actions, habits, etc.

a supporter of conservative political policies.

(initial capital letter) a member of a conservative political party, especially the Conservative party in Great Britain.

a preservative.

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Origin of conservative

1350–1400; <Late Latin conservātīvus, equivalent to Latin conservāt(us) (see conservation) + -īvus-ive; replacing Middle English conservatif < Middle French <Latin, as above

OTHER WORDS FROM conservative

con·serv·a·tive·ly, adverbcon·serv·a·tive·ness, nounan·ti·con·serv·a·tive, adjective, nounan·ti·con·serv·a·tive·ly, adverb

an·ti·con·serv·a·tive·ness, nounhalf-con·serv·a·tive, adjectivehalf-con·serv·a·tive·ly, adverbhy·per·con·serv·a·tive, adjective, nounhy·per·con·serv·a·tive·ly, adverbhy·per·con·serv·a·tive·ness, nounnon·con·ser·va·tive, adjective, nouno·ver·con·serv·a·tive, adjectiveo·ver·con·serv·a·tive·ly, adverbo·ver·con·serv·a·tive·ness, nounpseu·do·con·serv·a·tive, adjectivepseu·do·con·serv·a·tive·ly, adverbqua·si-con·serv·a·tive, adjectivequa·si-con·serv·a·tive·ly, adverbsem·i·con·serv·a·tive, adjectivesem·i·con·serv·a·tive·ly, adverbsu·per·con·serv·a·tive, adjectivesu·per·con·serv·a·tive·ly, adverbsu·per·con·serv·a·tive·ness, nounun·con·serv·a·tive, adjectiveun·con·serv·a·tive·ly, adverbun·con·serv·a·tive·ness, noun

Words nearby conservative

conservation of mass, conservation of momentum, conservation of parity, conservation status, conservatism, conservative, Conservative Baptist, Conservative Jew, Conservative Judaism, Conservative party, conservatize

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

How to use conservative in a sentence

Liberals say things that are way out there, and conservatives say things that are sometimes way out there, or don’t have enough evidence.
Pro-Trump youth group enlists teens in secretive campaign likened to a ‘troll farm,’ prompting rebuke by Facebook and Twitter|Isaac Stanley-Becker|September 15, 2020|Washington Post
David Graff, Senior Director, Trust & Safety at Google, said around the elections specifically but also around some other areas, Google is going to take a more conservative approach with what suggestions it shows in auto-complete.
Google now uses BERT to match stories with fact checks|Barry Schwartz|September 10, 2020|Search Engine Land
The thinking was the South Bronx was too conservative to elect an LGBTQ person…Not only did I win, but I won so decisively that it sent Ruben Diaz Sr.
Ritchie Torres, set to be first out Afro-Latino in Congress, seeks big changes amid COVID|Chris Johnson|September 9, 2020|Washington Blade
What conservative parents who opposed this are arguing is to rewrite history and we are arguing to teach history as it happened.
LGBTQ-inclusive curriculum laws take effect in N.J., Ill.|Philip Van Slooten|September 9, 2020|Washington Blade

In fact, there’s scant evidence of systematic anti-right bias by social-media platforms, according to two analyses by The Economist and a third by a researcher at the conservative American Enterprise Institute.
Why the most controversial US internet law is worth saving|Amy Nordrum|September 9, 2020|MIT Technology Review
Plus the GOP electorate has become more conservative since 2008.
The Devil in Mike Huckabee|Dean Obeidallah|January 6, 2015|DAILY BEAST
That Huckabee is mentioned in the same sentence with other aspiring conservative governors, especially Bobby Jindal, is laughable.
Why This Liberal Hearts Huckabee|Sally Kohn|January 6, 2015|DAILY BEAST
A hundred ultra-wealthy liberal and conservative donors have taken over the political system.
The 100 Rich People Who Run America|Mark McKinnon|January 5, 2015|DAILY BEAST
A colleague overheard two conservative Mass. lawmakers talking about what “the gays” could do.
The Real Story Behind the Fight for Marriage Equality|E.J. Graff|December 30, 2014|DAILY BEAST
The disbelief was evident in article after article, with one conservative site using “President Pinocchio” in its headline.
Obama Is Right on Race. The Media Is Wrong.|Keli Goff|December 29, 2014|DAILY BEAST
The conservative senate sent a deputation to Bonaparte, expressing their desire that he would accept the title of emperor.
The Every Day Book of History and Chronology|Joel Munsell
The man called Shiv was driving Delancy's get-away car at a conservative pace so as not to excite suspicion.
Hooded Detective, Volume III No. 2, January, 1942|Various
Who was it but its founder, that led the Conservative party through these successive stages of triumph?
Blackwood's Edinburgh Magazine, No. CCCXXXIX. January, 1844. Vol. LV.|Various
It was one of the conservative sheets, comic-less, reactionary Republican to the core.
Hooded Detective, Volume III No. 2, January, 1942|Various
In politics he took the Conservative side, but as regards music he was probably the most advanced radical in Moscow.
The Life & Letters of Peter Ilich Tchaikovsky|Modeste Tchaikovsky

British Dictionary definitions for conservative (1 of 2)

conservative

/ (kənˈsɜːvətɪv) /

adjective

favouring the preservation of established customs, values, etc, and opposing innovation

of, characteristic of, or relating to conservatism

tending to be moderate or cautiousa conservative estimate

conventional in style or typea conservative suit

med (of treatment) designed to alleviate symptomsCompare radical (def. 4)

physics a field of force, system, etc, in which the work done moving a body from one point to another is independent of the path taken between themelectrostatic fields of force are conservative

noun

a person who is reluctant to change or consider new ideas; conformist

a supporter or advocate of conservatism

adjective, noun

a less common word for preservative

Derived forms of conservative

conservatively, adverbconservativeness, noun

British Dictionary definitions for conservative (2 of 2)

Conservative

/ (kənˈsɜːvətɪv) /

adjective (in Britain, Canada, and elsewhere)

of, supporting, or relating to a Conservative Party

of, relating to, or characterizing Conservative Judaism

noun

a supporter or member of a Conservative Party

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

Cultural definitions for conservative

conservative

A descriptive term for persons, policies, and beliefs associated with conservatism.

conservative

Origin of conservative

OTHER WORDS FROM conservative

Words nearby conservative

Words related to conservative

How to use conservative in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for conservative (1 of 2)

Derived forms of conservative

British Dictionary definitions for conservative (2 of 2)

Cultural definitions for conservative