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fac·ti·tive

(făktĭ-tĭv)

adj.

Of or relating to a transitive verb that denotes the giving of a new character or status and that can take an object complement indicating that character or status, such as make in That makes me angry, or elect in We elected him Treasurer.

[New Latin factitīvus, from Latin factitāre, to do, practice, frequentative of facere, to do; see dhē- in the Appendix of Indo-European roots.]

facti·tive·ly adv.

Indo-European & Semitic Roots Appendices

Thousands of entries in the dictionary include etymologies that trace their origins back to reconstructed proto-languages. You can obtain more information about these forms in our online appendices:

Indo-European Roots

Semitic Roots

The Indo-European appendix covers nearly half of the Indo-European roots that have left their mark on English words. A more complete treatment of Indo-European roots and the English words derived from them is available in our Dictionary of Indo-European Roots.

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