Word Pronunciation & Dictionary

emptive

/ˈɛmptɪv/

Word Rarity Rare

Frequency: Zipf frequency 2.62 in modern English

Syllables: emp-tive
IPA: /ˈɛmptɪv/

14

Scrabble Score

7

Letters

2

Syllables

6

Unique Chars

Meaning

adj

Responding to or acting to counteract something when it happens (rather than beforehand).

Example Sentences

"Mike Malone recalls how the shaving of his fiancée's head was more of an “emptive” strike, since her hair was already on its way out."
"Emptive priority: The service to non-priority customer is stopped as soon as a priority customer arrives."
"This situation can be dealt with either in an emptive or pre-emptive fashion. In an emptive system the new entry waits for the other to be completed before beginning. In a pre-emptive system the queue can stop the current entry half way through its execution to start the new one."

Etymology

Back-formation from preemptive.

Inflected Forms

more emptive (comparative) most emptive (superlative)

Synonyms

reactive

Rhymes With

preemptive pre-emptive redemptive

Questions

How do you pronounce emptive?: The recorded pronunciation is /ˈɛmptɪv/.
What does emptive mean?: Responding to or acting to counteract something when it happens (rather than beforehand).
Where does emptive come from?: Back-formation from preemptive.

How to pronounce emptive

Open the pronunciation page — Open the Speakur entry for “emptive”.
Read the phonetic spelling — Read the IPA spelling (/ˈɛmptɪv/) so you know which sounds to aim for.
Play the audio — Click Play to hear reference audio for “emptive”.
Repeat and practice — Say “emptive” aloud, matching stress and vowels until it feels natural.