factive

American  

[fak-tiv] / ˈfæk tɪv /

adjective

1. (of a verb, adjective, or noun phrase) presupposing the truth of an embedded sentence that serves as complement, as realize in I didn't realize that he had left, which presupposes that it is true that he had left.

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noun

1. a factive expression.

factive British  

/ ˈfæktɪv /

adjective

1. logic linguistics philosophy (of a linguistic context) giving rise to the presupposition that a sentence occurring in that context is true, as John regrets that Mary did not attend

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Other Word Forms

• factivity noun

Etymology

Origin of factive

First recorded in 1605–15; fact + -ive