passivity

noun

pas·​siv·​i·​ty pa-ˈsi-və-tē 

1

: the quality or state of being passive : passiveness

The only thing that I find more depressing than this charlatan is the passivity of the museum-goers who pass before his works: they may have an inkling that they are being had, but they are unable to trust the evidence of their eyes.

—Jed Perl

… and now she was condemned to years of genteel English poverty by a passivity stubborn as low-grade fever.

—Vivian Gornick

The implication—that American policy makers had, out of some combination of timorous passivity and treasonous perfidy, lost China to Communism—set off one of the darkest-ever turns in American civic life.

—Daniel Kurtz-Phelan

2

chemistry : a chemically inactive state

—used especially of a metal that has lost its normal chemical activity and is resistant to corrosion

The lower limit of 11% is based on the markedly increased corrosion resistance and spontaneous passivity obtained at this level.

—Donald H. DeClerck et al.

Examples of passivity in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Sublimity involves an element of passivity. —Joshua Rothman, New Yorker, 21 Oct. 2025

Think movement rather than stagnation, discussion rather than passivity. —Meghan Rose, Glamour, 1 Oct. 2025

While some of the explanation for the result lies in Aston Villa’s strange passivity, Sunderland’s attitude to losing Reinildo and then going behind to Matty Cash’s 67th-minute long-range shot delighted Le Bris and the home support. —Michael Walker, New York Times, 22 Sep. 2025

Dating Feels Ambiguous, And Confidence Is Declining The Match survey also showed that 63% of singles say there is more passivity in making the first move, reflecting uncertainty around expectations and traditional versus modern gender roles. —Mark Travers, Forbes.com, 19 Sep. 2025

Word History

First Known Use

1659, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for passivity

• acclivity
• activity
• captivity
• declivity
• festivity
• nativity
• proclivity
• absorptivity
• affectivity
• collectivity
• conductivity
• connectivity

Medical Definition

passivity

noun

pas·​siv·​i·​ty pa-ˈsiv-ət-ē 

plural passivities

: the quality or state of being passive or submissive