directive
Americannoun
adjective
-
tending to direct; directing
-
indicating direction
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Etymology
Origin of directive
First recorded in 1425–75; late Middle English word from Medieval Latin word dīrēctīvus. See direct, -ive
Explanation
A directive is an order or official notice that comes from an authority. The directive from your boss instructing all employees to wear silly hats on Fridays might be hard to take seriously. Directives often come from employers, governments, supervisors, judges, or other authority figures. A math teacher might issue a directive to all students banning smart phones in the classroom after the school principal releases a directive instructing all math teachers to find ways to cut down on cheating during exams. Directive is also an adjective, meaning "helping to guide or manage."
Vocabulary lists containing directive
"When Do Kids Become Adults?" by Laurence Steinberg, et al.
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The Nazi Hunters
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The Unteachables
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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.
It's unclear if the concert was cancelled because of a government directive.
From BBC • Jul. 3, 2026
Attorneys can work specific language about dementia care into advance directives, but for many people, having a dementia directive as an addendum is a cost-effective option.
From The Wall Street Journal • Jul. 3, 2026
But perhaps the most bizarre directive in the will: that one-sixteenth of Hughes’s estate, or $156 million, go to Melvin Dummar, a gas-station operator in Utah.
From The Wall Street Journal • Jun. 29, 2026
Rather than retreat from the reaction, she took it as a directive: “There’s something I need to sit with here,” she remembers thinking.
From Los Angeles Times • Jun. 29, 2026
Omitting such words is taking the prime directive too far.
From "The Sense of Style" by Steven Pinker
Definitions 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.
