disjunctive

[ dis-juhngk-tiv ]

/ dɪsˈdʒʌŋk tɪv /

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adjective

serving or tending to disjoin; separating; dividing; distinguishing.

Grammar.

syntactically setting two or more expressions in opposition to each other, as but in poor but happy, or expressing an alternative, as or in this or that.
not syntactically dependent upon some particular expression.

Logic.

characterizing propositions that are disjunctions.
(of a syllogism) containing at least one disjunctive proposition as a premise.

noun

a statement, course of action, etc., involving alternatives.

Logic. disjunction (def. 2a).

Grammar. a disjunctive word.

QUIZ

THINGAMABOB OR THINGUMMY: CAN YOU DISTINGUISH BETWEEN THE US AND UK TERMS IN THIS QUIZ?

Do you know the difference between everyday US and UK terminology? Test yourself with this quiz on words that differ across the Atlantic.

Question 1 of 7

In the UK, COTTON CANDY is more commonly known as…

candystring

candyfloss

candypuff

TAKE THE QUIZ TO FIND OUT

Origin of disjunctive

1400–50; late Middle English <Late Latin disjunctīvus placed in opposition, equivalent to Latin disjunct(us) (see disjunct) + -īvus-ive

OTHER WORDS FROM disjunctive

dis·junc·tive·ly, adverbnon·dis·junc·tive, adjectivenon·dis·junc·tive·ly, adverb

Words nearby disjunctive

disjoined, disjoint, disjointed, disjunct, disjunction, disjunctive, disjuncture, disjune, disk, disk brake, disk crank

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use disjunctive in a sentence

Iéu (je), tu (tu), and éu (il) are used as disjunctive forms, in contrast with the French.
Frdric Mistral|Charles Alfred Downer
Or should we say that the note omitted was not Nt, but the present Parames and the interval of a tone (i.e. the disjunctive tone)?
The Modes of Ancient Greek Music|David Binning Monro
The disjunctive forms of the pronoun are also sometimes preserved before verbs and adjectives.
The Indian in his Wigwam|Henry R. Schoolcraft
Again, "the former does not belong to pure categoricals," it is simply disjunctive.
Notes and Queries, Number 217, December 24, 1853|Various

The chestnut, belonging to the order Cupuliferæ, has an extended but disjunctive natural area.
Origin of Cultivated Plants|Alphonse De Candolle

British Dictionary definitions for disjunctive

disjunctive

/ (dɪsˈdʒʌŋktɪv) /

adjective

serving to disconnect or separate

grammar

denoting a word, esp a conjunction, that serves to express opposition or contrast: but in the sentence She was poor but she was honest
denoting an inflection of pronouns in some languages that is used alone or after a preposition, such as moi in French

Also: alternative logic relating to, characterized by, or containing disjunction

noun

grammar

a disjunctive word, esp a conjunction
a disjunctive pronoun

logic a disjunctive proposition; disjunction

Derived forms of disjunctive

disjunctively, adverb

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