Link Centre Dictionary

inventive

in·ven·tive

UK/ɪnˈvɛntɪv/ US/ˌɪˈnvɛntɪv/ uncommon

adjective

1.

(used of persons or artifacts) marked by independence and creativity in thought or action

  • “an imaginative use of material”
  • “the invention of the knitting frame by another ingenious English clergyman” Lewis Mumford
  • “an ingenious device”
  • “had an inventive turn of mind”
  • “inventive ceramics”

Origin

From Middle English inventif, inventyfe, borrowed from Old French inventif, borrowed from Medieval Latin inventivus. By surface analysis, invent + -ive.

Related words

WordNet 2.1 (Princeton University). Wiktionary (CC BY-SA). CMU Pronouncing Dictionary. WordNet 2.1 Copyright Princeton University. All rights reserved. Wiktionary content is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike Licence.