digestive

[ dih-jes-tiv, dahy- ]

adjective

1. serving for or pertaining to digestion; having the function of digesting food:

   the digestive tract.

2. promoting digestion.

noun

1. a substance promoting digestion.

digestive

/ daɪ-; daɪˈdʒɛstənt; dɪˈdʒɛstɪv /

adjective

1. relating to, aiding, or subjecting to digestion

   a digestive enzyme

noun

1. See digestant
   a less common word for digestant
2. See digestive biscuit
   short for digestive biscuit

Derived Forms

• diˈgestively, adverb

Other Words From

• di·gestive·ly adverb
• nondi·gestive adjective
• postdi·gestive adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of digestive¹

1350–1400; Middle English < Middle French digestif < Latin dīgestīvus, equivalent to dīgest ( us ) ( digest ) + -īvus -ive

Example Sentences

Recovering patients, they say, have continued to test positive through samples from the lower digestive tract days after nasal and throat swabs came back negative.

From Washington Post

Each serving has 20 grams of protein with the inclusion of a helpful digestive enzyme.

From Popular-Science

It’s a fun look at what readers can gain by setting down the glass — from extra money to health benefits such as better sleep, clearer skin and fewer digestive problems.

From Washington Post

He’s an evolutionary anthropologist at Duke, and I’ve written about his research several times, most recently last year when he and his colleagues proposed that our digestive tracts dictate the limits of sustained multi-week endurance challenges.

From Outside Online

The company has already produced several possible proteins and has shown in its lab that they can survive digestive enzymes and the acidic environment found in the stomach.

From Fortune

The gastrointestinal (GI) tract performs different digestive functions are various different locations.

From The Daily Beast

Some natural health practitioners also say activated charcoal can be useful to treat minor digestive issues.

From The Daily Beast

“Biofuel” can be made out of anything that will ferment or rot, including digestive system waste products.

From The Daily Beast

For people with celiac disease, consuming gluten triggers an immune response in the digestive system.

From The Daily Beast

Quora Q: Does drinking water during meals help or hinder the digestive system?

From The Daily Beast

They often appear in digestive disturbances, in neurasthenia, and when the oxidizing power of the system is diminished.

From Project Gutenberg

It shuddered at the thought of Albert overloading his digestive tract any more than he had been doing the past week.

From Project Gutenberg

A reprint of articles bearing on this subject is issued under the title Digestive impossibilities.

From Project Gutenberg

As soon as the fish are nearly ready for spawning, all their digestive parts shrivel up, so that they can't eat.

From Project Gutenberg

Several glands, the function of which is to produce digestive fluids, open into the food tube.

From Project Gutenberg