intensive

[in-ten-siv]

adjective

1. of, relating to, or characterized by intensity.

   intensive questioning.

2. tending to intensify; intensifying.

3. Medicine/Medical.

   1. increasing in intensity or degree.

   2. instituting treatment to the limit of safety.

4. noting or pertaining to a system of agriculture involving the cultivation of limited areas, and relying on the maximum use of labor and expenditures to raise the crop yield per unit area (extensive ).

5. requiring or having a high concentration of a specified quality or element (used in combination).

   Coal mining is a labor-intensive industry.

6. Grammar.,  indicating increased emphasis or force. Certainly is an intensive adverb. Myself in I did it myself is an intensive pronoun.

noun

1. something that intensifies.

2. Grammar.,  an intensive element or formation, as -self in himself, or Latin -tō in iac-tō, “I hurl” from iacō, “I throw.”

intensive

/ ɪnˈtɛnsɪv /

adjective

1. involving the maximum use of land, time, or some other resource

   intensive agriculture

   an intensive course

2. (usually in combination) using one factor of production proportionately more than others, as specified

   capital-intensive

   labour-intensive

3. agriculture involving or farmed using large amounts of capital or labour to increase production from a particular area Compare extensive

4. denoting or relating to a grammatical intensifier

5. denoting or belonging to a class of pronouns used to emphasize a noun or personal pronoun, such as himself in the sentence John himself did it. In English, intensive pronouns are identical in form with reflexive pronouns

6. of or relating to intension

7. physics of or relating to a local property, measurement, etc, that is independent of the extent of the system Compare extensive

noun

1. an intensifier or intensive pronoun or grammatical construction

Other Word Forms

• intensively adverb
• intensiveness noun
• unintensive adjective
• unintensively adverb

Word History and Origins

Origin of intensive¹

First recorded in 1400–50; late Middle English, from the Medieval Latin word intēnsīvus. See intense, -ive

Example Sentences

The mother of another schoolgirl told local media her daughter was admitted to intensive care after taking several pills at once.

Read more on BBC

Bills for some of the country's most intensive business energy users will be cut by £420m from next year, the government has said.

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But some intensive farming methods have also allowed farmers to grow food for the country - and farmers I spoke to pointed out that they face tough financial choices.

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Product sales for 2025-2027 are seen weaker due to intensive domestic competition, while selling and administrative expenses are seen rising to support new drug launches.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

"He will continue to be monitored closely in the intensive care unit."

Read more on Barron's

Related Words

• accelerated www.thesaurus.com
• all-out 
• comprehensive 
• demanding 
• in-depth 
• thorough