Word.ws English Dictionary

attributive

/əˈtɹɪb.ju.tɪv/US/əˈtɹɪb.jə.tɪv/

attributive adjective: modifying another word, typically a noun, while in the same phrase.

Adjective

attributive (comparative more attributive, superlative most attributive)

  1. Modifying another word, typically a noun, while in the same phrase.
    • In "this big house", big is attributive, whereas in "this house is big", it is predicative.
    • In "this tiger is a man-eater," man is an attributive noun.
    Antonyms:
    predicative
  2. Attributing; characterized by attributing; effecting attribution.
    • To hate, &c.] Or thus, To be affected with hatred and horrour at. For abhor, though arranged in our dictionaries among verbs active, attributes an affection rather than an act of the mind. As the mind however is an active principle, all verbs attributive of what passes in the mind, even those we...1806, Benjamin Dawson, Philologia Anglicana: or, a Philological and synonymical dictionary of the English language ["A-Adornment"], page 36
    • * 947 आल and आट put after वाक् Speech, with it form adjectives attributive of much bad or improper speaking; as वाचाल, or वाचाट Who utters much bad language.
    • * 948 […] affixed to nouns, with them form adjectives attributive of detraction,[…]1808, Charles Wilkins, A Grammar of the Sanskrita Language, page 516

Noun

attributive (plural attributives)

  1. An attributive word or phrase (see above), contrasted with predicative or substantive.
    • In "this big house," big is an attributive, while in "this house is big," it is a predicative.

Examples of attributive in a sentence

  • Grammatically, three ways of using adjectives can be distinguished: the attributive use, the predicative use and the adverbial use.2013, Sebastian Loebner, Understanding Semantics:
  • As the mind however is an active principle, all verbs attributive of what passes in the mind, even those we call neuter, attribute at the same time some mental act or operation.1806, Benjamin Dawson, Philologia Anglicana: or, a Philological and synonymical dictionary of the English language ["A-Adornment"], page 36:

Antonyms of attributive

Forms of attributive

Adjective
comparativemore attributive
superlativemost attributive
Noun
pluralattributives

Origin of attributive

From attribute + -ive.

Words formed from attributive

Phrases with attributive

Questions about attributive

What does attributive mean?
Attributive means modifying another word, typically a noun, while in the same phrase.
How do you use attributive in a sentence?
Grammatically, three ways of using adjectives can be distinguished: the attributive use, the predicative use and the adverbial use.
What part of speech is attributive?
Attributive can be an adjective or a noun.
How do you pronounce attributive?
Attributive is pronounced /əˈtɹɪb.ju.tɪv/ (UK).

Words near attributive in the dictionary

  1. attributional complexities
  2. attributional complexity
  3. attributionist
  4. attributionists
  5. attributions
  6. attributive
  7. attributive adjective
  8. attributive adjectives
  9. attributive clause
  10. attributive clauses
  11. attributive noun

Source and license

Adapted from Wiktionary: attributive (page history and authors). Text available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 license. Word.ws reformatted the entry and added links. Wiktionary data of 2026-09-02.

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