Dictionary.com
Thesaurus.com
Synonyms

inventive

American  
[in-ven-tiv] / ɪnˈvɛn tɪv /

adjective

  1. apt at inventing or thinking up new machines or devices, methods, solutions, etc., or at improvising from what is at hand; innovative or ingenious.

    Luckily the bike mechanic is a most inventive person—you’ll be surprised at what he can do with a piece of wire and some scrap metal.

  2. apt at creating with the imagination.

    The delightful and tirelessly inventive storyteller is back with an animated stop-motion adventure.

  3. being the product of imagination, resourcefulness, etc.; creative and original.

    It’s an enthralling, inventive, and wholly unique exhibit from an artist without peer.

  4. relating to or used for inventing.

    These recordings captured the musician at the height of her inventive power.
inventive British  
/ ɪnˈvɛntɪv /

adjective

  1. skilled or quick at contriving; ingenious; resourceful

  2. characterized by inventive skill

    an inventive programme of work

  3. of or relating to invention

"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

Other Word Forms

  • inventively adverb
  • inventiveness noun
  • preinventive adjective
  • uninventive adjective
  • uninventively adverb

Etymology

Origin of inventive

First recorded in 1400–50; invent + -ive; replacing late Middle English inventif, from Old French

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

It’s rich, layered, and more inventive than the usual.

From Salon • Mar. 31, 2026

It's easy to see why more inventive Easter creations keep appearing on our shelves - people like to buy them.

From BBC • Mar. 27, 2026

Andie’s disorganized but inventive, and that’s exactly the way she likes it.

From Salon • Feb. 28, 2026

Through some inventive structures and a playful rewiring of romantic tropes going back to Homer, Groff stitches together a portrait of a marriage that she then carefully unravels.

From Los Angeles Times • Feb. 26, 2026

The student body had gotten inventive, though, and it wasn’t uncommon to see cables, shoestrings, and U-locks used to keep them shut.

From "Anger Is a Gift" by Mark Oshiro

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.