Word Pronunciation & Dictionary

constructive

/kənˈstɹʌktɪv/

Word Rarity Rare

Frequency: 3.78 in modern English

Syllables: con-struc-tive
IPA: /kənˈstɹʌktɪv/

19

Scrabble Score

12

Letters

3

Syllables

10

Unique Chars

Meaning

adj

Relating to or causing construction.

adj

Carefully considered and meant to be helpful.

adj

Serving a useful purpose.

adj

Deemed after the fact to exist or to have occurred, despite the formal process not having been followed; often when there was no intention to do so at the time.

adj

Not direct or expressed, but inferred.

Example Sentences

"At the same time, it was Marx's view that under communism men's individual possibilities would display themselves only in socially constructive ways, so that conflicts among individuals would lose all raison d'être."
"constructive dismissal"
"constructive notice"
"constructive trust"
"A President's power begins slipping away the moment it is known that he is going to leave: I had seen that in 1952, in 1960, in 1968. On the eve of my resignation I knew that my role was already a symbolic one, and that Gerald Ford's was now the constructive one. My telephone calls and meetings and decisions were now parts of a prescribed ritual aimed at making peace with the past; his calls, his meetings, and his decisions were already the ones that would shape America's future."

Etymology

From Latin cōnstrūctīvus. By surface analysis, construct + -ive.

Origin

Source language: Latin

Word Breakdown

Root: *strew-, cōnstrūctīvus

Inflected Forms

more constructive (comparative) most constructive (superlative)

Derived Forms

coconstructive constructively constructiveness constructivism constructivist constructivization constructivize deconstructive inconstructive misconstructive nonconstructive preconstructive

Phrases

constructive criticism constructive dismissal constructive eviction constructive force constructive fraud constructive interference constructive logic constructive malice

Synonyms

productive helpful useful

Antonyms

destructive

Rhymes With

productive non-productive destructive reproductive seductive unproductive conductive instructive obstructive inductive reconstructive superconductive

Questions

How do you pronounce constructive?: The recorded pronunciation is /kənˈstɹʌktɪv/.
What does constructive mean?: Relating to or causing construction.
Where does constructive come from?: It is traced to Latin.

How to pronounce constructive

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