determinative
Americanadjective
noun
-
something that determines.
-
a graphic symbol used in ideographic writing to denote a semantic class and written next to a word to indicate in what semantic category that word is to be understood, thus at times distinguishing homographs.
adjective
noun
-
a factor, circumstance, etc, that settles or determines
-
grammar a less common word for determiner
-
(in a logographic writing system) a logogram that bears a separate meaning, from which compounds and inflected forms are built up
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of determinative
1645–55; probably < Medieval Latin dēterminātīvus fixed, Late Latin: crucial (of a disease), equivalent to Latin dētermināt ( us ) ( see determinate) + -īvus -ive
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
But voting rights and legal form aren’t determinative for these purposes.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Nov. 24, 2025
Going into arguments, the determinative question was whether Gorsuch would apply his reasoning in Bostock to this case.
From Slate ● Dec. 4, 2024
“The thing that’s perhaps the most determinative when you come up to the parole board process is what kind of prisoner have you been?”
From Los Angeles Times ● Nov. 25, 2024
Historically, the Iowa caucuses have been interesting, if not determinative, kickoffs for nominating contests, cutting down front-runners and elevating little-known contenders.
From New York Times ● Jan. 12, 2024
The resulting ambiguity was resolved by the addition of a silent sign called a determinative, to indicate the category of nouns to which the intended object belonged.
From "Guns, Germs, and Steel: The Fates of Human Societies" by Jared M. Diamond
Random Word
Spin the wheel and learn a new word!
Get a wordDefinitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
