as in creative
having a role in deciding something's final form
a teacher who was a formative influence on generations of students
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Recent Examples of formative
Divided into a quintet of distinct chapters and covering everything from Scorsese’s formative years on the mean streets of downtown Manhattan to prepping his 2023 epic Killers of the Flower Moon, this marathon-length look at a true American master has its share of best-in-show highlight reels.
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David Fear, Rolling Stone, 4 Oct. 2025
One section traces Fletcher's formative years and early experimentations; another touches on her current artistic explorations.
—Christian Allaire, Vogue, 2 Oct. 2025
But Chad also spent formative years with his family on the South Pacific island of Saipan, where he was introduced to an entirely different way to think about the ocean.
—Outside Online, 1 Oct. 2025
So anyway, incredibly formative time and a very, very competitive company.
—Fortune Editors, Fortune, 1 Oct. 2025
See All Example Sentences for formative
David Fear, Rolling Stone, 4 Oct. 2025
One section traces Fletcher's formative years and early experimentations; another touches on her current artistic explorations.
—Christian Allaire, Vogue, 2 Oct. 2025
But Chad also spent formative years with his family on the South Pacific island of Saipan, where he was introduced to an entirely different way to think about the ocean.
—Outside Online, 1 Oct. 2025
So anyway, incredibly formative time and a very, very competitive company.
—Fortune Editors, Fortune, 1 Oct. 2025
See All Example Sentences for formative
Recent Examples of Synonyms for formative
Adjective
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Most successful forgers were smart and creative people, and many of their forgeries were consummate, even ingenious.—
JSTOR Daily,
JSTOR Daily,
16 Oct. 2025
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The opinion is also one of which the new Victoria’s Secret creative director, Adam Selman, disagrees with.—
Essence,
Essence,
16 Oct. 2025
Adjective
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If Toronto wants to keep clawing back in this series, a productive Guerrero is essential.—
Mitch Bannon,
New York Times,
16 Oct. 2025
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Even in the best-case scenario — artificial intelligence transforms the economy, making Americans richer and more productive — AI will involve lots of disruption.—
Allison Schrager,
Mercury News,
16 Oct. 2025
Adjective
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The ability to take in constructive feedback and research, and then make necessary changes, is essential for any business to succeed, entrepreneur and author James Sherman told CNBC Make It in November 2023.—
Tom Huddleston Jr.,
CNBC,
10 Oct. 2025
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Thanks to Obama’s initiative, the USA is now playing a more constructive role in meeting the great climatic challenges the world is confronting.—
Shane Croucher,
MSNBC Newsweek,
10 Oct. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Formative.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/formative. Accessed 18 Oct. 2025.
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