affirmative

[ uh-fur-muh-tiv ]

adjective

1. affirming or assenting; asserting the truth, validity, or fact of something.
2. expressing agreement or consent; assenting:

   an affirmative reply.

3. positive; not negative.
4. Logic. noting a proposition in which a property of a subject is affirmed, as “All men are happy.”

noun

1. something that affirms or asserts; a positive statement or proposition; affirmation.
2. a reply indicating assent, as Yes or I do.
3. a manner or mode that indicates assent:

   a reply in the affirmative.

4. the side, as in a debate, that affirms or defends a statement that the opposite side denies or attacks:

   to speak for the affirmative.

interjection

1. (used to indicate agreement, assent, etc.):

   “Is this the right way to Lake George?” “Affirmative.”

affirmative

/ əˈfɜːmətɪv /

adjective

1. confirming or asserting something as true or valid

   an affirmative statement

2. indicating agreement or assent

   an affirmative answer

3. logic
   1. (of a categorial proposition) affirming the satisfaction by the subject of the predicate, as in all birds have feathers; some men are married
   2. not containing negation Compare negative

noun

1. a positive assertion
2. a word or phrase stating agreement or assent, such as yes (esp in the phrase answer in the affirmative )
3. logic an affirmative proposition
4. the affirmative
   the side in a debate that supports the proposition

sentence substitute

1. military a signal codeword used to express assent or confirmation

Derived Forms

• afˈfirmatively, adverb

Other Words From

• af·firma·tive·ly adverb
• over·af·firma·tive adjective
• over·af·firma·tive·ly adverb
• preaf·firma·tive adjective
• quasi-af·firma·tive adjective
• quasi-af·firma·tive·ly adverb

Word History and Origins

Origin of affirmative¹

1400–50; < Latin affirmātīvus, equivalent to affirmāt- ( affirmation ) + -īvus -ive; replacing late Middle English affirmatyff < Middle French < Latin

Example Sentences

This difference is despite seven decades of affirmative action, India's caste system - a four-fold hierarchy of the Hindu religion - remains deeply entrenched.

From BBC

They said she was stupid and basically a "DEI" or "affirmative action" or "quota" hire, "the enemy within" to be vanquished.

From Salon

"There certainly is less enthusiasm around pursuing what we might call an affirmative trade agenda in terms of liberalisation, openness, reduction of barriers," he said.

From BBC

Before putting a consumer’s bill on autopilot, the law says, businesses must obtain “express affirmative consent.”

From Los Angeles Times

Ghana now joins Rwanda, Uganda, Burundi, Mozambique and others in Africa that have working affirmative action laws.

From BBC