substitutive
Americanadjective
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serving as or capable of serving as a substitute.
-
pertaining to or involving substitution.
adjective
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acting or able to act as a substitute
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of or involving substitution
Usage
What does substitutive mean? Substitutive is an adjective that describes a thing capable of taking the place of or that has taken the place of another. It can also be used to describe anything that involves such a substitution. Substitutive is an adjective form of the word substitute, which can be used as both a verb (to replace something with another thing) or as a noun (something that replaces something else). The similar adjective substitutable can mean capable of being used as a substitute, but it probably more often means capable of being replaced. The adjective substituent can mean the same thing as substituted or substitutable. Example: These safety measures are not meant to be substitutive—they’re being implemented in addition to the current plan.
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of substitutive
First recorded in 1590–1600; substitute + -ive
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.
Researchers used both additive and substitutive experimental designs to separate the effects of goldfish from the effects associated with having more fish overall.
From Science Daily ● Jun. 26, 2026
The concern, I think I, and some other folks who watch this industry have, is that this type of automation is purely substitutive.
From The Verge ● Mar. 23, 2021
By contrast, performance-improving innovations either create few new jobs because they’re substitutive, or they destroy jobs through gains in productivity.
From Forbes ● Oct. 15, 2014
"Gee, I've found a friend," said Oscar, who once confessed that his troubles revolved around "acute anxieties, ritualistic compulsions, substitutive obsessions and irrational hostilities."
From Time Magazine Archive
These two possibilities are by no means mutually exclusive, and we are inclined to think that both substitutive processes may have co-operated in bringing about this custom.
From The Pagan Tribes of Borneo by Haddon, Alfred C. (Alfred Cort)
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.
