affirmative

American  

[uh-fur-muh-tiv] / əˈfɜr mə tɪv /

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.”

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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 British  

/ 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

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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 side in a debate that supports the proposition

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

Other Word Forms

• affirmatively adverb
• overaffirmative adjective
• overaffirmatively adverb
• preaffirmative adjective
• quasi-affirmative adjective
• quasi-affirmatively adverb

Etymology

Origin of affirmative

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

Explanation

Something affirmative expresses agreement or approval, like the affirmative nod your mother gives you when you ask to be excused from the dinner table. A formal way of saying "Yes" is "Affirmative!" Anything affirmative is approving of something: affirmative words support someone or something. Being affirmative is the opposite of being negative or contradicting. A pat on the back is affirmative so is a signature you need to complete a form. Also, you can use affirmative as a formal way of saying yes to something. This is common in the military. It might sound a little odd, but if your teacher asked, "Does 10 plus 10 equal 20?" you could answer, "Affirmative!"

Example Sentences

“We need to see an affirmative commitment that they will not seek a nuclear weapon and they will not seek the tools that will enable them to quickly achieve a nuclear weapon,” he said.

From Barron's • Apr. 12, 2026

Congress made the affirmative decision to broaden its grant of birthright citizenship from the earlier statute.

From Slate • Apr. 1, 2026

The judge said the Supreme Court ruling on affirmative action “certainly does not proscribe any particular classroom speech, or relate at all to curricular choices.”

From Los Angeles Times • Jan. 21, 2026

While diversity programs have gone by a variety of names over the decades — nondiscrimination, affirmative action, DEI — they all trace their roots to the Civil Rights Movement, which lasted from 1954 to 1968.

From Salon • Jan. 19, 2026

But there was a problem: One day I listened approvingly to a government official defend affirmative action; the next day I realized the benefits of the program.

From "Hunger of Memory" by Richard Rodriguez