constructive
Americanadjective
-
helping to improve; promoting further development or advancement (destructive ).
constructive criticism.
- Synonyms:
- useful, handy, helpful, productive
-
of, relating to, or of the nature of construction; structural.
-
deduced by inference or interpretation; inferential.
constructive permission.
-
Law. denoting an act or condition not directly expressed but inferred from other acts or conditions.
adjective
-
serving to build or improve; positive
constructive criticism
-
law deduced by inference or construction; not expressed but inferred
-
law having a deemed legal effect
constructive notice
-
another word for structural
Other Word Forms
- constructively adverb
- constructiveness noun
- nonconstructive adjective
- nonconstructively adverb
- nonconstructiveness noun
- quasi-constructive adjective
- quasi-constructively adverb
- unconstructive adjective
- unconstructively adverb
Etymology
Origin of constructive
1670–80; < Medieval Latin constrūctīvus, equivalent to Latin constrūct(us) ( construct ) + īvus -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.
“We remain committed to full environmental compliance, responsible stewardship, and constructive engagement with regulatory authorities and local stakeholders,” Lazizi Mara said after the court announced its decision.
That doji was followed by a bearish engulfing candle, but the setup remains constructive.
From Barron's
On a longer-term horizon, however, Hartnett is very constructive on the rest of the world, particularly relative to the U.S.
From MarketWatch
Thursday’s surge in share prices reflected both the low expectations heading into the results and management’s notably more constructive tone on inventory cleanup, analysts at UBS wrote in a note.
Rocket Lab “is in a high-growth and evolving sector, and this could present opportunities for us to get constructive again,” KeyBanc analyst Michael Leshock said in a note to investors last month.
From MarketWatch
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.
