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Definition of passive - 6 dictionary results

pas⋅sive

  [pas-iv]
Use passive in a Sentence
–adjective
1. not reacting visibly to something that might be expected to produce manifestations of an emotion or feeling.
2. not participating readily or actively; inactive: a passive member of a committee.
3. not involving visible reaction or active participation: to play a passive role.
4. inert or quiescent.
5. influenced, acted upon, or affected by some external force, cause, or agency; being the object of action rather than causing action (opposed to active ).
6. receiving or characterized by the reception of impressions or influences from external sources.
7. produced or caused by an external agency.
8. receiving, enduring, or submitting without resistance: a passive hypnotic subject.
9. Grammar.
a. noting a voice in the inflection of the verb in some languages which is used to indicate that the subject undergoes the action of the verb. Latin portātur, “he, she, or it is carried,” is in the passive voice.
b. noting or pertaining to a construction similar to this in meaning, as English He is carried (opposed to active ).
10. Chemistry. inactive, esp. under conditions in which chemical activity is to be expected.
11. Metallurgy. (of a metal) treated so as to impart impassivity.
12. Medicine/Medical. of or pertaining to certain unhealthy but dormant conditions; inactive, as opposed to active or spontaneous.
13. Telecommunications. designed to relay signals without electronic devices: a passive communications satellite.
14. (of a solar heating system) accumulating and distributing solar heat without the aid of machinery.
–noun Grammar.
15. the passive voice.
16. a passive form or construction.
Origin:
1350–1400; ME < L passīvus lit., submissive, equiv. to pass(us) (ptp. of patī to experience, undergo, submit) + -īvus -ive

Related forms:
pas⋅sive⋅ly, adverb

Synonyms:
8. submissive, unresisting.

Antonyms:
1–3. active. 8. recalcitrant.
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
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pas·sive   (pās'ĭv)   
adj.  

  1. Receiving or subjected to an action without responding or initiating an action in return: the mind viewed as a passive receptacle for sensory experience. See Synonyms at inactive.

  2. Accepting or submitting without objection or resistance; submissive: a passive acceptance of one's fate.

  3. Existing, conducted, or experienced without active or concerted effort: "Although tick paralysis is a reportable disease in Washington, surveillance is passive, and only 10 cases were reported during 1987-1995" (U.S. Department of Health and Human Services). "[Many parents believe] that computers are educational and, at the least, less passive than television" (Tamar Lewin).

  4. Of, relating to, or being certain bonds or shares that do not bear financial interest.

  5. Of, relating to, or being a solar heating or cooling system that uses no external mechanical power.

  6. Grammar Of, relating to, or being a verb form or voice used to indicate that the grammatical subject is the object of the action or the effect of the verb. For example, in the sentence They were impressed by his manner, were impressed is in the passive voice.

  7. Chemistry Unreactive except under special or extreme conditions; inert.

  8. Electronics Exhibiting no gain or contributing no energy: a passive circuit element.

  9. Psychology Relating to or characteristic of an inactive or submissive role in a relationship, especially a sexual relationship.

n.  

  1. Grammar

    1. The passive voice.

    2. A verb or construction in the passive voice.

  2. One that is submissive or inactive. Often used in the plural: "And the rest of us, we passives of the world, proceeded . . . as if nothing untoward had happened" (Martin Gottfried).


[Middle English, from Old French passif, from Latin passīvus, subject to emotion, the passive, from passus, past participle of patī, to suffer; see pē(i)- in Indo-European roots.]
pas'sive·ly adv., pas'sive·ness n.
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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Word Origin & History

passive  (adj.)
1388, in grammatical sense (opposed to active), from L. passivus "capable of feeling or suffering," from pass-, pp. stem of pati "to suffer" (see passion). Meaning "not active" is first recorded 1477. Passive resistance first attested 1819 in Scott's "Ivanhoe"; re-coined by Gandhi c.1906 in S.Africa.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
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Legal Dictionary

Main Entry: pas·sive
Pronunciation: 'pa-siv
Function: adjective
: not involving, deriving from, or requiring effort or active participation passive duty not to interfere>; specifically : of, relating to, or being business activity in which the investor does not have immediate control over the income-producing activity <passive income> <passive losses>
NOTE: Any rental activity is designated a passive activity under the Internal Revenue Code. Investment income is not considered income from a passive activity. —pas·sive·ly adverb —pas·sive·ness noun
Merriam-Webster's Dictionary of Law, © 1996 Merriam-Webster, Inc.
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Medical Dictionary

Main Entry: pas·sive
Pronunciation: 'pas-iv
Function: adjective
1 a (1) : lethargic or lacking in energy or will (2) : tending not totake an active or dominant part passive spouse> b : induced by an outside agency <passive exercise of a paralyzed leg>
2 a : of,relating to, or characterized by a state of chemical inactivity b : not involving expenditure of chemical energy <passive transport across a plasma membrane> —pas·sive·ly adverb —pas·sive·ness noun
Merriam-Webster's Medical Dictionary, © 2002 Merriam-Webster, Inc.
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Medical Dictionary

passive pas·sive (pās'ĭv)
n.

  1. Accepting or submitting without resistance or objection.

  2. Of or being an inactive or submissive role in a relationship, especially a sexual relationship.

  3. Chemically unreactive except under special or extreme conditions; inert.

pas'sive·ly adv.
pas'sive·ness n.

The American Heritage® Stedman's Medical Dictionary
Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company.
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