meditative
Americanadjective
Synonym Usage
See pensive.
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of meditative
From the Late Latin word meditātīvus, dating back to 1605–15. See meditate, -ive
Explanation
The adjective meditative is good for describing something that's reflective or deeply thoughtful. Your favorite movies might be quiet, slow-paced, and meditative. When you reflect on your life or an important decision, you are meditative, and anything that involves this state of mind can be described the same way. A yoga studio often has a meditative feeling about it, and good, thoughtful advice is usually offered in a meditative way. The root of meditative is the Latin word meditat, or "contemplated," which in turn comes from a Proto-Indo-European root that means "to measure, consider, or advise."
Vocabulary lists containing meditative
This Week in Pop Culture: January 19 - 25, 2019
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Our Town
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"Young Goodman Brown" by Nathaniel Hawthorne
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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.
And his search for a Christian philosophy goes from meditative to frightening.
From Slate • Jun. 18, 2026
Sonny Rollins, the "Saxophone Colossus" whose hard-charging yet flowingly meditative works made him the last in a golden era of jazz greats, died Monday.
From Barron's • May 26, 2026
"It's almost meditative doing something creative with my hands."
From BBC • Mar. 28, 2026
Complete with sci-fi elements, a meditative space and a 30-foot-tall mushroom tower, Meow Wolf’s new location will open at the end of 2026.
From Los Angeles Times • Mar. 19, 2026
Which, you see, Pip,” said Joe, pausing in his meditative raking of the fire, and looking at me, “were a drawback on my learning.”
From "Great Expectations" by Charles Dickens
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.
