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.
See Examples For:
Either way, you’ll need to vocalize some boundaries, but I’d go about it differently depending on who this directive is coming from.
From MarketWatch ● Aug. 19, 2026
The league office needs to send a directive to all team owners, coaches, players and referees, to stop this behavior and play like professionals.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 15, 2026
The FAA directive, which was published Thursday and will take effect on Sept. 10, will apply to certain Boeing 737-8, 737-9, and 737-8200 model airplanes.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 7, 2026
"I was really pleased to see that Uefa had taken the position that they have, and they were very clear with their directive and firm about how they want this to go," added Asante.
From BBC ● Jul. 31, 2026
She didn’t think she could retain one more concept, directive, or lecture about the history of the splendor's use.
From "Beasts of Prey" by Ayana Gray
Warren suggested that Venturella’s recusal related to “particular matters” involving Geo Group would allow him to still play a role in developing policies, directives and guidances that could present a conflict of interest.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 3, 2026
"We give site owners clear controls to decide whether pages can be crawled or indexed, and we always respect those directives."
From BBC ● Jul. 27, 2026
Make sure to update your beneficiary designations, powers of attorney, healthcare directives and will.
From MarketWatch ● Jul. 24, 2026
Institutional judgment becomes meaningless when operational directives can be rewritten on a whim overnight.
From Salon ● Jul. 21, 2026
Within hours after the assassination—I am telling nothing but the truth—every Muslim minister received from Mr. Elijah Muhammad a directive—in fact, two directives.
From "The Autobiography of Malcolm X" by Alex Malcolm X;Hailey
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.
