adaptive

adjective

Simple meaning

Of a trait: that helps an organism to function well in its environment.

Pronunciation

Say it like this:

uhdaptiv

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US device voice

IPA pronunciation (US)

əˈdæptɪv

This word is pronounced essentially the same in American and British English, so one transcription covers both.

IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) is a standard way of writing speech sounds.

Word Review

Definition

Everyday modern meanings first, grouped by part of speech.

adjective

Of, pertaining to, characterized by or showing adaptation; making or made fit or suitable.
evolutionary theory
Of a trait: that helps an organism to function well in its environment.
psychology
Of a trait: that helps a person to function well in society.
Capable of being adapted or of adapting; susceptible of or undergoing accordant change.

Word at a Glance

Difficulty: B1 · Intermediate (estimated)
Frequency: Moderately Common
Typical Use: Neutral / general English

Word Aura™

How this word commonly comes across.

Aura for this meaning

This meaning: Of, pertaining to, characterized by or showing adaptation; making or made fit or suitable.

'Adaptive' describes something that has the quality of being able to adapt or is the result of adaptation. It often appears in technical or scientific contexts, highlighting flexibility or fitness for purpose.

Emotional tone: Neutral
Formality: Neutral
Intensity: Not strongly marked
How common: Moderately common
Connotation: No strong connotation
Usage feel: Neutral and straightforward

Where you'll really hear it

Science articles
“The plant developed an adaptive mechanism to conserve water.”
Psychology research
“Learning new skills is an adaptive behavior for personal growth.”
Technology descriptions
“This software features an adaptive interface that learns your preferences.”

Nearby words

adaptative , rarer, so it draws attention

Word Aura describes common impressions, not a measurement. Tone changes with sentence, speaker, relationship and situation.

More ways to use adaptive

“The adaptive coloring of a chameleon.”adjective

Common Patterns and Combinations

How this word naturally appears with others.

adaptive controladaptive radiationadaptive managementadaptive systemadaptive opticsadaptive behavioradaptive responseadaptive value

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Word Family

Related forms, grouped by how they connect.

Word family

Words built from the same root.

adapternounPerson or profession
A musician who adapts a composition for particular voices or instruments or for another style of performance.
adaptornounPerson or profession · specialist
Device that enables something to be used in a way different from that for which it was intended or makes different pieces of apparatus compatible.
adaptationnounDerived noun
A written work (as a novel) that has been recast in a new form.
adaptableadjectiveDerived adjective
Capable of adapting (of becoming or being made suitable) to a particular situation or use.

Compound terms

Established multiword terms.

adaptive radiationnounCompound term
The development of many different forms from an originally homogeneous group of organisms as they fill different ecological niches.

More about this wordSynonyms, forms, origin

Synonyms

Sense: of or pertaining to or characterized by

adaptationaladaptativeRare

Antonyms

Sense: of or pertaining to or characterized by

maladaptive

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Dictionary data from Wiktionary via the Free Dictionary API. Simple meanings, combinations and word intelligence are built from verified reference data, no AI is used to load this page.