adjective
"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012Other Word Forms
- nonretentive adjective
- nonretentively adverb
- nonretentiveness noun
- retentively adverb
- retentiveness noun
- unretentive adjective
- unretentively adverb
- unretentiveness noun
Etymology
Origin of retentive
1325–75; Middle English retentif < Middle French < Medieval Latin retentīvus, equivalent to Latin retent ( us ) ( retention ) + -īvus -ive
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
It was enough to turn a beautiful sentiment of kindness into a painfully retentive memory; a constant reminder of what is to come.
From New York Times
They prefer soil that is organically enriched, moisture retentive and on the acidic side.
From Seattle Times
Instead, Marcell has spent a lot of time gardening, memorizing poems “to keep the retentive memory supple” and working remotely when he can.
From Los Angeles Times
My soil is dark, crumbly, and highly water retentive, but it also breathes.
From New York Times
Certainly some qualities of mind popularly associated with so-called high-functioning autism — focus, computational ability, a retentive memory, a preference for rational argument over feeling — are useful in most academic fields.
From New York Times
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
