expressive
[ ik-spres-iv ]
/ ɪkˈsprɛs ɪv /
adjective
full of expression; meaningful: an expressive shrug.
serving to express; indicative of power to express: a look expressive of gratitude.
of, relating to, or concerned with expression: Dance is a highly expressive art.
Sociology. (of a crowd or group) engaging in nonpurposeful activity of an expressive and often rhythmic nature, as weeping, dancing, or shouting.Compare active(def 15), orgiastic(def 3).
Linguistics. of or relating to forms in which sounds denote a semantic field directly and nonarbitrarily, through sound symbolism based, to some degree, on synesthesia, as observable in onomatopoeia, rhyming and gradational compounds, and emotionally charged words such as hypocoristics and pejoratives.
QUIZZES
CHALLENGE YOURSELF WITH THIS MIDDLE SCHOOL PART OF SPEECH QUIZ!
How well do you know your adjectives from your adverbs? Your preposition from your pronouns? Your interjections from your conjunctions? Let’s put your knowledge of parts of speech to the text!
Note: Many of the following questions will ask you to identify the parts of speech “in order.” That means the first word in all capital letters will correspond to the first option in an answer, and so on.
Question 1 of 10
In order, what parts of speech are the words in all capital letters? Alisa was VERY tired, SO she decided to go to bed.
Origin of expressive
synonym study for expressive
1, 2. Expressive, meaningful, significant, suggestive imply the conveying of a thought, indicating an attitude of mind, or the like, by words or otherwise. Expressive suggests conveying, or being capable of conveying, a thought, intention, emotion, etc., in an effective or vivid manner: an expressive gesture. Meaningful and significant imply an underlying and unexpressed thought whose existence is plainly shown although its precise nature is left to conjecture. Meaningful implies a secret and intimate understanding between the persons involved: Meaningful looks passed between them. Significant suggests conveying important or hidden meaning: On hearing this statement, he gave the officers a significant glance. Suggestive implies an indirect or covert conveying of a meaning, sometimes mentally stimulating, sometimes verging on impropriety or indecency: a suggestive story or remark. See also eloquent.
OTHER WORDS FROM expressive
Words nearby expressive
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2020
Example sentences from the Web for expressiveness
British Dictionary definitions for expressiveness
expressive
/ (ɪkˈsprɛsɪv) /
adjective
of, involving, or full of expression
(postpositive foll by of) indicative or suggestive (of)a look expressive of love
having a particular meaning, feeling, or force; significant
Derived forms of expressive
expressively, adverbexpressiveness, nounCollins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition
© William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012