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contrastive

[ kuhn-tras-tiv ]
/ kənˈtræs tɪv /
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See synonyms for: contrastive / contrastively on Thesaurus.com

adjective
tending to contrast; contrasting. contrastive colors.
studying or exhibiting the congruences and differences between two languages or dialects without reference to their origins: contrastive linguistics.
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Origin of contrastive

First recorded in 1810–20; contrast + -ive

OTHER WORDS FROM contrastive

con·tras·tive·ly, adverbun·con·tras·tive, adjectiveun·con·tras·tive·ly, adverb
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use contrastive in a sentence

  • These parallels become especially impressive when they are seen contrastively from a wide phonetic perspective.

    Language|Edward Sapir
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