conservative

[kuhn-sur-vuh-tiv]

adjective

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

2. cautiously moderate or purposefully low.

   a conservative estimate.

3. traditional in style or manner; avoiding novelty or showiness.

   conservative suit.

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

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

6. having the power or tendency to conserve or preserve.

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

noun

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

2. a supporter of conservative political policies.

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

4. a preservative.

conservative

¹

/ kənˈsɜːvətɪv /

adjective

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

2. of, characteristic of, or relating to conservatism

3. tending to be moderate or cautious

   a conservative estimate

4. conventional in style or type

   a conservative suit

5. med (of treatment) designed to alleviate symptoms Compare radical

6. 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 them

   electrostatic fields of force are conservative

noun

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

2. a supporter or advocate of conservatism

adjective

1. a less common word for preservative

Conservative

²

/ kənˈsɜːvətɪv /

adjective

1. of, supporting, or relating to a Conservative Party

2. of, relating to, or characterizing Conservative Judaism

noun

1. a supporter or member of a Conservative Party

conservative

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

Other Word Forms

• conservatively adverb
• conservativeness noun
• anticonservative adjective
• anticonservatively adverb
• anticonservativeness noun
• half-conservative adjective
• half-conservatively adverb
• hyperconservative adjective
• hyperconservatively adverb
• hyperconservativeness noun
• nonconservative adjective
• overconservative adjective
• overconservatively adverb
• overconservativeness noun
• pseudoconservative adjective
• pseudoconservatively adverb
• quasi-conservative adjective
• quasi-conservatively adverb
• semiconservative adjective
• semiconservatively adverb
• superconservative adjective
• superconservatively adverb
• superconservativeness noun
• unconservative adjective
• unconservatively adverb
• unconservativeness noun

Word History and Origins

Origin of conservative¹

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

Example Sentences

One anecdote from the report claims that when Patel traveled to Utah following the killing of conservative influencer Charlie Kirk, he “refused” to leave his plane without wearing an FBI raid jacket.

Read more on Salon

"Airbus is taking a conservative approach and is inspecting all aircraft potentially impacted -- knowing that only a portion of them will need further action to be taken," she added.

Read more on Barron's

The European plane maker said Monday it was taking a “conservative approach” by inspecting jets that may be affected by what it described as a “supplier-quality issue.”

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

Even conservative investors are more exposed just by the nature of the market.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

George Abaraonye lost a no-confidence vote following criticism for the comments he made on social media after the shooting of the US conservative activist.

Read more on BBC

Related Words

• right of center 
• right-wing