Antonyms for passive
| Grammar : Adj |
| Spell : pas-iv |
| Phonetic Transcription : ˈpæs ɪv |
Definition of passive
Origin :- late 14c., in grammatical sense (opposed to active), Old French passif "suffering, undergoing hardship" (14c.) and directly from Latin passivus "capable of feeling or suffering," from pass-, past participle stem of pati "to suffer" (see passion). Meaning "not active" is first recorded late 15c.; sense of "enduring suffering without resistance" is from 1620s. Related: Passively. Passive resistance first attested 1819 in Scott's "Ivanhoe," used throughout 19c.; re-coined by Gandhi c.1906 in South Africa. Passive-aggressive with reference to behavior is attested by 1971.
- adj lifeless, inactive
- When he was at an end of the reading, he regarded the passive woman at the desk with a new respect.
- Extract from : « Within the Law » by Marvin Dana
- Passive, patient, long-suffering she had been the while the mortifications and slights were for herself.
- Extract from : « In the Valley » by Harold Frederic
- And there was a passive congeniality between them, besides this active one.
- Extract from : « Little Dorrit » by Charles Dickens
- We ask for nothing but passive co-operation--that is, a free passage for our troops.
- Extract from : « Freeland » by Theodor Hertzka
- Memory is passive, and consequently memory is a species of passion.
- Extract from : « Initiation into Philosophy » by Emile Faguet
- Similarly, the association of ideas is passive, and in consequence is a kind of passion.
- Extract from : « Initiation into Philosophy » by Emile Faguet
- But had he not been passive, as you call it, what would you have done to Mr. Solmes?
- Extract from : « Clarissa, Volume 3 (of 9) » by Samuel Richardson
- With her speaking to him, he became as passive as the clay she moulded.
- Extract from : « Cleo The Magnificent » by Louis Zangwill
- In the whole of this transaction the Moravians were passive and unresisting.
- Extract from : « Chronicles of Border Warfare » by Alexander Scott Withers
- Madame Raquin remained huddled up and passive like a bundle of linen.
- Extract from : « Therese Raquin » by Emile Zola
Synonyms for passive
- acquiescent
- apathetic
- asleep
- bearing
- compliant
- cool
- docile
- enduring
- flat
- forbearing
- going through motions
- hands off
- idle
- indifferent
- inert
- laid-back
- latent
- long-suffering
- moony
- motionless
- nonresistant
- nonviolent
- patient
- phlegmatic
- poker-faced
- quiescent
- quiet
- receptive
- resigned
- sleepy
- static
- stolid
- submissive
- tractable
- unassertive
- unflappable
- uninvolved
- unresisting
- walking through it
- yielding
Based on : Thesaurus.com - Gutenberg.org - Dictionary.com - Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019