creative

[kree-ey-tiv]

See more synonyms for creative on Thesaurus.com

adjective

having the quality or power of creating.
resulting from originality of thought, expression, etc.; imaginative: creative writing.
originative; productive (usually followed by of).

Facetious. using or creating exaggerated or skewed data, information, etc.: creative bookkeeping.

Origin of creative

First recorded in 1670–80; create + -ive

Related formscre·a·tive·ly, adverbcre·a·tive·ness, nounan·ti·cre·a·tive, adjectivean·ti·cre·a·tive·ly, adverban·ti·cre·a·tive·ness, nounnon·cre·a·tive, adjectivenon·cre·a·tive·ly, adverbnon·cre·a·tive·ness, nounsub·cre·a·tive, adjectivesub·cre·a·tive·ly, adverbsub·cre·a·tive·ness, nounun·cre·a·tive, adjectiveun·cre·a·tive·ly, adverbun·cre·a·tive·ness, noun

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Examples from the Web for creative

Contemporary Examples

It was his business acumen, his own unflagging zeal for the creative business solution, that had freed Sam to do this.
How Martin Luther King Jr. Influenced Sam Cooke’s ‘A Change Is Gonna Come’
Peter Guralnick
December 28, 2014
The creative team behind the new My Lai project is working out the details for set design.
The My Lai Massacre Inspires an Opera
Asawin Suebsaeng
December 17, 2014
It was creative thinking like this that helped it debut at number one on Billboard Top Heatseekers Chart.
OK Go Is Helping Redefine the Music Video For the Internet Age
Lauren Schwartzberg
December 15, 2014
In this day and age, this “help” comes in a variety of forms, from creative writing courses to ghost writers.
Meet Zoella—The Newbie Author Whose Book Sales Topped J.K. Rowling
Lucy Scholes
December 11, 2014
They are creative, investing a lot, and are forward thinking.
ISIS Has a Message. Do We?
Jamie Dettmer
December 8, 2014

Historical Examples

It would not be in accord with creative energy that I should go backward.
The Conquest of Fear
Basil King
After that, I hope to be able to recreate my creative faculty.
De Profundis
Oscar Wilde
On what agonies of creative and original minds is the safety of their homes based?
Albert Durer
T. Sturge Moore
Of the creative arts, there is one part purer or more akin to knowledge than the other.
Philebus
Plato
Of the creative arts, then, we may make two classes—the less exact and the more exact.
Philebus
Plato

British Dictionary definitions for creative

creative

adjective

having the ability to create
characterized by originality of thought; having or showing imaginationa creative mind
designed to or tending to stimulate the imaginationcreative toys
characterized by sophisticated bending of the rules or conventionscreative accounting

noun

a creative person, esp one who devises advertising campaigns

Derived Formscreatively, adverbcreativeness, nouncreativity, 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 creative

adj.

1670s, "having the quality of creating," from create + -ive. Of literature, "imaginative," from 1816, first attested in Wordsworth. Creative writing is attested from 1907. Related: Creatively.

creative

Origin of .css-1fxfie5{font-size:22px;}@media (max-width:768px){.css-1fxfie5{font-size:18px;margin:0 10px 10px 0;word-break:break-all;word-wrap:break-word;-webkit-hyphens:auto;-moz-hyphens:auto;-ms-hyphens:auto;hyphens:auto;line-height:22px;}}creative

Examples from the Web for creative

Contemporary Examples

It was his business acumen, his own unflagging zeal for the creative business solution, that had freed Sam to do this.

The creative team behind the new My Lai project is working out the details for set design.

It was creative thinking like this that helped it debut at number one on Billboard Top Heatseekers Chart.

In this day and age, this “help” comes in a variety of forms, from creative writing courses to ghost writers.

They are creative, investing a lot, and are forward thinking.

Historical Examples

It would not be in accord with creative energy that I should go backward.

After that, I hope to be able to recreate my creative faculty.

On what agonies of creative and original minds is the safety of their homes based?

Of the creative arts, there is one part purer or more akin to knowledge than the other.

Of the creative arts, then, we may make two classes—the less exact and the more exact.

creative

Word Origin and History for creative

adj.

Origin of creative