distinctive

American  

[dih-stingk-tiv] / dɪˈstɪŋk tɪv /

adjective

1. serving to distinguish; characteristic; distinguishing: distinguishing.

   the distinctive stripes of the zebra.

   Synonyms:

   individual

2. having a special quality, style, attractiveness, etc.; notable.

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distinctive British  

/ dɪˈstɪŋktɪv /

adjective

1. serving or tending to distinguish

2. denoting one of a set of minimal features of a phoneme in a given language that serve to distinguish it from other phonemes. The distinctive features of /p/ in English are that it is voiceless, bilabial, non-nasal, and plosive; /b/ is voiced, bilabial, non-nasal, and plosive: the two differ by the distinctive feature of voice

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Other Word Forms

• distinctively adverb
• distinctiveness noun
• subdistinctive adjective
• subdistinctively adverb
• subdistinctiveness noun

Etymology

Origin of distinctive

First recorded in 1575–85; from Medieval Latin distinctīvus; equivalent to distinct + -ive

Example Sentences

But the not-so-obvious benefit of U.S. involvement in running the country might come from the distinctive ability of American refineries to handle the type of oil that Venezuela claims to have in abundance.

From MarketWatch

With its lush landscape, distinctive "dragon blood" trees, unique animals and turquoise waters, Yemen's Socotra archipelago has been a magnet for adventurous travellers for years.

From Barron's

“We know that this distinctive talent is not only centered at a handful of, I’ll call them, elite sources,” Ciesil said.

From The Wall Street Journal

It shows women dressed in distinctive crash helmets carrying the bottles and pyrotechnics to customers, before detaching them and pouring drinks.

From BBC

We can be pluralists about universities’ distinctive missions.

From The Wall Street Journal

Related Words

• cool
• extraordinary
• idiosyncratic
• offbeat
• original
• peculiar
• singular
• special
• weird