Meaning

Relating to or causing construction..

Definitions by Sense

1. Relating to or causing construction.
2. Carefully considered and meant to be helpful.
3. Serving a useful purpose.
4. (law) Deemed after the fact to exist or to have occurred, despite the formal process not having been followed; often when there was no intention to do so at the time.
5. Not direct or expressed, but inferred.

Example Sentences

constructive dismissal

constructive notice

constructive trust

A President's power begins slipping away the moment it is known that he is going to leave: I had seen that in 1952, in 1960, in 1968. On the eve of my resignation I knew that my role was already a symbolic one, and that Gerald Ford's was now the constructive one. My telephone calls and meetings and decisions were now parts of a prescribed ritual aimed at making peace with the past; his calls, his meetings, and his decisions were already the ones that would shape America's future.

Word Forms

• more constructive
• most constructive

Synonyms for constructive

Antonyms for constructive

Related Words

When Should You Use Constructive?

Use constructive when its meaning, tone and grammar fit the full sentence. A synonym is not always a direct replacement.

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