Dictionary

generative en · ADJ

Pronunciation

• [ˈd͡ʒɛnəɹəɾɪv] (Canada, US)
• (Southern-England) audio
• (US) audio
• /ˈd͡ʒɛnəɹətɪv/ (Canada, US)
• /ˈd͡ʒɛnɹətɪv/ (Canada, US)
• [ˈd͡ʒɛnɹəɾɪv] (Canada, US)
• [d͡ʒəˈnɛɹəɾɪv] (Canada, US)
• [ˈd͡ʒenəɹəɾɪv] (Australia)
• /ˈd͡ʒenəɹətɪv/ (Australia)
• /d͡ʒəˈnɛɹətɪv/ (UK)
• /ˈd͡ʒɛnəɹətɪv/ (UK)
• /ˈd͡ʒɛnɹətɪv/ (UK)
• /d͡ʒəˈnɛɹətɪv/ (Canada, US)

Etymology

Etymology tree Proto-Indo-European *ǵenh₁- Proto-Indo-European *-os Proto-Indo-European *ǵénh₁os Proto-Italic *genos Latin genus Proto-Indo-European *-h₂ Proto-Indo-European *-éh₂ Proto-Indo-European *-yéti Proto-Indo-European *-eh₂yéti Proto-Indo-European *-h₂tiinflu. Proto-Italic *-ājō Proto-Italic *-āō Latin -ō Latin genero Proto-Indo-European *-wós Proto-Indo-European *-iHwósder. Latin -īvus Old French -ifbor. Middle English -yf Middle English generatyve English generative Inherited from Middle English generatyve. By surface analysis, generate + -ive. Compare French génératif.

Meanings

1. Having the power of generating, propagating, originating, or producing.
   • Of course, structures like those associated with (36) and (37) constitute only a tiny subset of the infinite set of well-formed sentence structures found in English. We can increase the Generative Capacity of our grammar ( = the set of structures which it generates) either by expanding the Lexicon on the one hand, or by expanding the Categorial Rules (i.e. Phrase Structure Rules) on the other. 1988, Andrew Radford, Transformational grammar: a first course, Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press, page 127:
   • The document states that despite its ongoing advancements, generative AI is liable to the United States’s current copyright principles, which take a strict stance on what material—human- or machine-made—qualifies for protection. 2025 January 30, Tessa Solomon, “AI Art Lacking ‘Human Expression’ Cannot Be Copyrighted, US Officials Say”, in ARTnews:
   • That generative particle. 1692, Richard Bentley, [A Confutation of Atheism] (please specify the sermon), London: [Thomas Parkhurst; Henry Mortlock], published 1692–1693:
2. (euphemistic) Reproductive.
   • Hence the ubiquity of Priapus himself as a sculptural representative of the generative principle, populated the Roman gardens, assertive in ithyphallic pose. 1961, Harry E. Wedeck, Dictionary of Aphrodisiacs, New York: The Citadel Press, page iii:
   • This ceremony seals the covenant in the flesh of the male generative organ. 2001, David L. Lieber, Jules Harlow, Etz Hayim: Torah and Commentary, page 91:

Forms

Antonyms

annihilative

Deriveds

antigenerative · generativistic · ungenerative · cogenerative · generativity · generativism · generative grammar · generative act · generative artificial intelligence · generative art · generativist · nongenerative · neurogenerative · generative medicine · trigenerative · generative AI · generativeness · generative lexicon · generatively · generative adversarial network

Relateds

degenerative

Synonyms

creative

Translations (17)

de generativ (having the power of generating) · sh stvàralački (having the power of generating) · bg производителен (having the power of generating) · fr génératif (having the power of generating) · sh ге̏нератӣван (having the power of generating) · ka წარმომშობი (having the power of generating) · bg размножителен (having the power of generating) · fi generatiivinen (having the power of generating) · nn generativ (having the power of generating) · sh ства̀ралачки (having the power of generating) · ro generativ (having the power of generating) · it generativo (having the power of generating) · pt generativo (having the power of generating) · ca generatiu (having the power of generating) · sh gȅneratīvan (having the power of generating) · ka მაწარმოებელი (having the power of generating) · es generativo (having the power of generating)