descriptive
adjective
de·scrip·tive
di-ˈskrip-tiv 
1
: presenting observations about the characteristics of someone or something : serving to describe
a descriptive account
2
a
: referring to, constituting, or grounded in matters of observation or experience
the descriptive basis of science
b
: factually grounded or informative rather than normative, prescriptive, or emotive
descriptive cultural studies
3
of a modifier
a
: expressing the quality, kind, or condition of what is denoted by the modified term
hot in "hot water" is a descriptive adjective
b
4
linguistics
: of, relating to, or dealing with the structure of a language at a particular time usually with exclusion of historical and comparative data
descriptive linguistics
descriptively
adverb
descriptiveness
noun
Examples of descriptive in a Sentence
She gave a descriptive account of the journey.
a talent for descriptive writing
a poem full of descriptive detail
The black cat was given the descriptive name “Midnight.”
The book is a descriptive grammar.
Recent Examples on the Web
Instead of an initial setup tutorial, Surfshark explains every feature in detail with descriptive labels for each element.
—
PC Magazine, 19 May 2025
The result is this nonfiction murder mystery, whose Cajun setting is captured in a descriptive, sometimes lyrical, style worthy of James Lee Burke.
—Sandra Dallas, Denver Post, 18 May 2025
This phrase can roughly be defined as descriptive of a product that is designed to cater to a viewer from almost every demographic of India, a country with as many as 22 official languages, 2,000 dialects and 1.4 billion people.
—Vishal Menon, HollywoodReporter, 16 May 2025
By automating critical processes, these technologies can enhance operational efficiency while analyzing search trends, user intent and descriptive domain names to improve visibility through enhanced search engine optimization (SEO) and organic search performance.
—Lisa Box, Forbes.com, 15 May 2025
See All Example Sentences for descriptive
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PC Magazine, 19 May 2025
The result is this nonfiction murder mystery, whose Cajun setting is captured in a descriptive, sometimes lyrical, style worthy of James Lee Burke.
—Sandra Dallas, Denver Post, 18 May 2025
This phrase can roughly be defined as descriptive of a product that is designed to cater to a viewer from almost every demographic of India, a country with as many as 22 official languages, 2,000 dialects and 1.4 billion people.
—Vishal Menon, HollywoodReporter, 16 May 2025
By automating critical processes, these technologies can enhance operational efficiency while analyzing search trends, user intent and descriptive domain names to improve visibility through enhanced search engine optimization (SEO) and organic search performance.
—Lisa Box, Forbes.com, 15 May 2025
See All Example Sentences for descriptive
Cite this Entry
“Descriptive.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/descriptive. Accessed 5 Jun. 2025.
Copy CitationKids Definition
descriptive
adjective
de·scrip·tive
di-ˈskrip-tiv
: serving to describe
a descriptive account
a descriptive adjective
descriptively
adverb
descriptiveness
noun
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