affirmative
adjective
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Definition of affirmative
(Entry 1 of 2)
1 : asserting that the fact is so gave an affirmative answer affirmative proof
2 : positive an affirmative approach
3 : favoring or supporting a proposition or motion an affirmative vote was on the affirmative side in the debate
4 logic : asserting a predicate of a subject
affirmative
nounDefinition of affirmative (Entry 2 of 2)
1 : an expression (such as the word yes) of affirmation or assent
2 : the side that upholds the proposition stated in a debate
3 logic : an affirmative (see affirmative entry 1 sense 4) proposition
: with an affirmative reply : with a reply that means "yes" He answered in the affirmative.
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Synonyms & Antonyms for affirmative
Synonyms: Noun
Antonyms: Noun
nay, negative, no, non placet
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Examples of affirmative in a Sentence
Adjective
She gave an affirmative answer, not a negative answer.Noun
we have five affirmatives and two negatives for forming the committeeRecent Examples on the Web: Adjective
Janus struck a second blow by requiring affirmative consent before collecting money from public workers. That’s good news for the litigants in the 2014 Harris case, whose claim for damages has been pending under the new title Riffey v Rauner. — Red Jahncke, WSJ, "A Union Scam Could Be About to End," 16 July 2018 Antioch College in Ohio pioneered affirmative consent in 1991 to combat date rape on campus. — Lisa Rose, CNN, "Sexual consent is a worldwide conversation," 4 Apr. 2018 Ars also specifically asked how the SBSD interprets the California State Constitution’s affirmative right to privacy, as outlined in Article I, Section 1. — Cyrus Farivar, Ars Technica, "Why does one California county sheriff have the highest rate of stingray use?," 24 Oct. 2018 The Trump administration is doing away with a series of affirmative-action policy documents put in place under former President Barack Obama that encourage colleges and universities to use race in admissions processes to promote campus diversity. — Andrew O'reilly, Fox News, "Trump administration is breaking from Obama-era affirmative action policies," 2 Oct. 2018 The biggest difference from the 2016 vote, which saw a stunning 5-4 rejection of Hansen’s Occidental request, is that the affirmative result now removes the final local hurdle to construction beginning and Seattle landing an NHL franchise. — Geoff Baker, The Seattle Times, "Why the Seattle City Council voted in favor of KeyArena but not Chris Hansen’s Sodo project," 25 Sep. 2018 The lawsuit by the Pacific Legal Foundation, a limited-government organization that opposes affirmative-action policies, followed a series in The Courant last year that reported on efforts to diversify Hartford-area schools under the Sheff suit. — Matthew Kauffman, courant.com, "Sheff Supporters Seek To Intervene In Suit Challenging Racial Quotas," 8 May 2018 Gaumont also is raising several other affirmative defenses to the lawsuit, including unclean hands and bad faith. — Eriq Gardner, The Hollywood Reporter, "'Narcos' Producer Says She Didn't Breach Confidentiality in Lawsuit Filing," 16 Apr. 2018 The social network has now responded in the affirmative, at least regarding Huawei, exacerbating the already-high tension between Facebook and U.S. lawmakers. — David Meyer, Fortune, "Facebook Now Admits It Also Shared Your Data with Chinese Phone Maker Huawei," 6 June 2018Recent Examples on the Web: Noun
Use liberally the affirmatives Yes, ma’am and Yes, sir, having grown up under threat of a stiff switch. — Melissa Lyttle, Smithsonian, "The First Family of Rodeo," 13 Dec. 2017These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'affirmative.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
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More Definitions for affirmative
affirmative
adjective
English Language Learners Definition of affirmative
: saying or showing that the answer is “yes” rather than “no”
See the full definition for affirmative in the English Language Learners Dictionary
affirmative
adjective
\
Kids Definition of affirmative
(Entry 1 of 2)
1 : saying or showing that the answer is "yes" He gave an affirmative answer.
2 : being positive or helpful Take an affirmative approach to the problem.
affirmative
nounKids Definition of affirmative (Entry 2 of 2)
1 : an expression (as the word yes) of agreement
2 : the side that supports or votes for something
affirmative
adjective
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Legal Definition of affirmative
1 : asserting the existence of certain facts especially in support of a cause of action affirmative proof
2 : resulting from an intentional act affirmative concealment
3 : involving or requiring application of effort an affirmative duty
4 : favoring or supporting a proposition or motion an affirmative vote
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