declarative

adjective

de·​clar·​a·​tive di-ˈkler-ə-tiv How to pronounce declarative (audio)
: making a declaration : declaratory
a declarative sentence
declaratively adverb

Examples of declarative in a Sentence

“They went to school” is a declarative sentence.
Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
There is a stillness to the painting, a declarative, dreamy flatness, as if the women are being remembered rather than observed. Alexandra Schwartz, New Yorker, 11 July 2025 If the Lubavitcher community had been struck by something on the scale of the Judeans’ loss of the Temple and their enslavement, what are now marginal, hallucinatory visions of the rebbe would almost certainly take on a more declarative, redemptive form. Adam Gopnik, The New Yorker, 24 Mar. 2025 The technology’s declarative framework features a declarative API and controller for building and running agents via a user interface, from the programmer’s command line interface and via declarative configuration. Adrian Bridgwater, Forbes, 17 Mar. 2025 That isn’t to say Burns’ safely declarative dialogue and what-if storytelling won’t spur you to think of your own relationship and matters of fulfillment. Robert Abele, Los Angeles Times, 21 Feb. 2025 See All Example Sentences for declarative

Word History

First Known Use

1628, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of declarative was in 1628

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Cite this Entry

“Declarative.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/declarative. Accessed 26 Jul. 2025.

Kids Definition

declarative

adjective
de·​clar·​a·​tive di-ˈklar-ət-iv How to pronounce declarative (audio)
-ˈkler-
: making a declaration or statement
declarative sentence

Medical Definition

declarative

adjective
de·​clar·​a·​tive di-ˈklar-ət-iv, -ˈkler- How to pronounce declarative (audio)
: being or comprising memory characterized by the conscious recall of facts and events compare procedural
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