Expressive — Ex*press ive, a. [Cf. F. expressif.] 1. Serving to express, utter, or represent; indicative; communicative; followed by of; as, words expressive of his gratitude. [1913 Webster] Each verse so swells expressive of her woes. Tickell. [1913 Webster] … The Collaborative International Dictionary of English
expressive — expressive, eloquent, significant, meaningful, pregnant, sententious mean clearly conveying or manifesting a thought, idea, or feeling or a combination of these. Something is expressive which vividly or strikingly represents the thoughts,… … New Dictionary of Synonyms
expressive — [ek spres′iv, ikspres′iv] adj. [ME < ML expressivus] 1. of or characterized by expression 2. that expresses or shows; indicative (of) [a song expressive of joy] 3. full of meaning or feeling [an expressive nod] expressively adv. expressiveness … English World dictionary
expressive — ► ADJECTIVE 1) effectively conveying thought or feeling. 2) (expressive of) conveying (a quality or idea). DERIVATIVES expressively adverb expressiveness noun expressivity noun … English terms dictionary
expressive — c.1400, tending to press out, Fr. expressif, from expres clear, plain, from stem of L. exprimere (see EXPRESS (Cf. express) (v.)). Meaning full of expression is from 1680s. Related: Expressively; expressiveness … Etymology dictionary
expressive — [adj] telling, revealing alive, allusive, articulate, artistic, brilliant, colorful, demonstrative, dramatic, eloquent, emphatic, energetic, forcible, graphic, indicative, ingenious, lively, masterly, meaningful, mobile, moving, passionate,… … New thesaurus
expressive — expressively, adv. expressiveness, n. /ik spres iv/, adj. 1. full of expression; meaningful: an expressive shrug. 2. serving to express; indicative of power to express: a look expressive of gratitude. 3. of, pertaining to, or concerned with… … Universalium
expressive — [[t]ɪkspre̱sɪv[/t]] 1) ADJ GRADED If you describe a person or their behaviour as expressive, you mean that their behaviour clearly indicates their feelings or intentions. You can train people to be more expressive... She had almost the same look… … English dictionary
expressive — ex|pres|sive [ ık spresıv ] adjective 1. ) clearly showing what your thoughts or feelings are, especially by your behavior: a wonderfully expressive face He gave an expressive shudder when asked to hold the snake. an expressive description of… … Usage of the words and phrases in modern English
expressive — UK [ɪkˈspresɪv] / US adjective 1) clearly showing what your thoughts or feelings are, especially by your behaviour a wonderfully expressive face He gave an expressive shudder when asked to hold the snake. an expressive description of childhood… … English dictionary
